HEALTH bosses in Worcestershire are bidding for a slice of £8.5m Government cash to boost services for sufferers of debilitating conditions.

Three Primary Care Trusts in Worcestershire and Hereford have submitted a joint bid to the Department of Health in the hope of receiving £203,170.

If the bid is a success, the cash would improve local treatment for patients suffering from Myalgic Encephalopathy (ME) or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).

It is estimated there are between 780 and 1,040 people with ME or CFS in South Worcestershire.

Worcestershire ME Support Group co-ordinator Jill Pigott said services for county residents with the debilitating conditions are virtually non-existent at present and desperately needed.

She said many GPs still fail to diagnose the illness which can, in the most severe cases, render people bed-bound and is often characterised by tiredness and muscle fatigue, ongoing flu-like malaise, concentration problems and memory loss.

Where it is diagnosed, sufferers can be referred to the only specialist in the county, Dr Alastair Miller, but he is based in Kidderminster.

There is a 13-week wait for an appointment with him and people from the Worcester, Malvern, Hereford and Evesham have to travel to see him.

"Those with severe ME or CFS are bed-bound and cannot get there," said Mrs Pigott.

There is then a six to nine-month wait to see an occupational therapist for treatment, she added.

If the bid is successful, the three county PCTs aim to appoint more occupational therapists, psychologists, psychotherapists, dieticians and a clinical/research assistant to provide more treatment on an outreach basis where the professionals travel to each location.

It is believed a decision on the funding will be announced in the summer and if the money is awarded it is hoped services will be improved before the end of this year.