A MOTHER and daughter were forced to use their savings to pay for life-saving treatment for the younger woman because of a dispute over which NHS body should fund her care, a report said yesterday.

The daughter, referred to as Miss S, lived in South Wales but became depressed and developed anorexia while staying with a friend in England.

Her mother, referred to as Mrs S, complained they were forced to fund her daughter’s care privately with £31,000 of life savings because her health was deteriorating while the question of funding her treatment was debated.

Miss S said: “I was lucky so much that Mum was able to fund my healthcare when it seemed as if I was being left to die.”

A joint report by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales and Health Service Ombudsman for England found maladministration and service failure by Health Commission Wales, Cardiff and Vale NHS Trust, and Plymouth Teaching Primary Care Trust.

The report said these failures resulted in “unremedied injustice and hardship” for both women and it recommended they be reimbursed for the money they had spent.