"Waiting time"

I am an NHS care at home worker. Over the last 6 months I have developed severe pain and numbness in my hands through the night which wakes me up and keeps me awake for a number of hours. I went to see my GP who said its carpal tunnel and referred me to a Dr at Raigmore Hospital Inverness. After 2\3 weeks I phoned to see how long it would be for the appointment and was told the waiting time for an appointment is approximately 9 months

Someone told me to ask for the private payment department at the hospital, which I did and low and behold, if you are willing to pay you can get seen within a few weeks by the same person. Upset is to mild a word to use as to how I feel right now. I'm not going to take this lying down.