Private healthcare patients from the Middle East have been given preferential treatment at an NHS prosthetics unit at Queen Mary’s Hospital, breaching strict rules, it is claimed.

The NHS fraud squad is probing allegations that patients from Afghanistan and Iraq have been flying to the Roehampton hospital – a worldclass centre in its field – to receive specialist treatment before NHS amputees.

It is claimed private-paying patients are being given lengthy consultations during NHS core hours while health service amputees struggle to get their standard appointments.

The 8am to 4pm timeslots are allotted solely for health service patients.

However, Wandsworth PCT said only 40 slots were booked between April and November 2008, amounting to 0.7 per cent of amputee patients.

It also said there had been no private patient bookings since November.

NHS patients who use the £55m Douglas Bader prosthetics unit claimed the practice had steadily increased over the last 10 years.

The unit, which cares for 3,000 amputees, has also been accused of manufacturing products for private patients – another breach of NHS rules.

One patient, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “This situation is completely unacceptable. An NHS run on UK taxpayers’ money should be used for NHS patients.

“Amputees need undivided care and attention. A quick fitting is no good.

"They roll out the red carpet for the private patients and some get a five-hour slot with a prosthetist, who fit the limbs, whereas we are lucky to get an hour.

“I don’t know any other centres that are run like this. It’s bad management all round. From the PCT, Opcare – the company which provides the service – and Queen Mary’s.”

NHS guildelines clearly state no member of staff should see private patients or carry out private work, including manufacturing, during normal NHS working hours.

It has also been claimed Wandsworth Primary Care Trust (PCT) receives a fee from each amputee’s own PCT every time they visit the unit. This effectively translates to the less effective the service, the more money the trust receives.

The patient said: “If the Government suddenly decides they are spending too much money on prosthetics because of this, who will suffer?”

Putney MP Justine Greening said: “The patients’ day to day quality of life is affected enormously.

"The prosthetics unit at Queen Mary’s is a flagship model that other units around the country are supposed to model themselves on. This is deeply embarrassing for the PCT.”

A spokesman for the NHS counterfraud squad confirmed it was investigating the claims.

Ian Reynolds, chairman of Wandsworth PCT, said when new contractors Opcare took over the running of the service last April an agreement was made to see private patients outside of NHS hours.

He added: “In November 2008 the PCT was notified of a concern that some private patients were being seen during these core NHS hours.

“We found that during the transition phase between April 2008 and November 2008, 40 private patient appointment slots were made during core NHS hours.

“Some of these 40 appointment slots would have been booked under the previous provider contract, which did not ask that private patients be treated outside of NHS core hours.”

He added no other private patients had been seen in NHS hours since last November.