THE pensioner who has waited 13 months for treatment to a broken ankle faces a trip to another hospital to see if his foot can be saved.

Retired farmer Donald Wilkinson had a consultation with an orthopaedic surgeon at York yesterday, after being given an urgent appointment by York Hospitals NHS Trust.

He said he was told that the condition of his ankle had deteriorated over the months since he injured it in an accident at his home in Everingham, near Pocklington, in January last year.

The surgeon told Mr Wilkinson he wanted to refer him to a specialist in rebuilding ankles, based at St James's University Hospital in Leeds - commonly known as Jimmy's.

"I don't know how long it will take to see this other surgeon, but I hope it won't be long, after I've waited all this time," Mr Wilkinson said.

"He warned me that if they can try to save my foot, by putting a nail up the ankle, it could be placed in a cage for months. They took X-rays which showed the ankle was as close as it's possible to be to a total collapse."

Mr Wilkinson, 73, was given the appointment after complaining to the Evening Press last week about the long delays he had suffered, and the paper passed on his complaint to York Hospitals NHS Trust.

The pensioner said he was told in March last year that the ankle would need to be straightened and a nail inserted up from the heel.

However, he had been waiting more than six months for the treatment when a consultant told him in September that the ankle's condition had deteriorated and he should prepare himself for the possibility that he might lose the foot.

He was then given an MRI scan in November, but, because of an error, no one followed up the results.

The trust has apologised for this error.

Mr Wilkinson said he had let the surgeon know his unhappiness about the delays, and the surgeon had said he had read the Evening Press reports and was aware of his views.

Updated: 09:33 Friday, February 17, 2006