Waiting list rises after row over NHS figures

Telegraph

6 hours ago

The NHS waiting list has risen again as it is 'struggling to keep pace with demand'.
The backlog rose by 10,000 to 7.37 million as of the end of June, compared with the previous month, driven by an increase in the number of patients being referred for appointments.
It comes as experts revealed the NHS waiting list data was 'misleading' because it did not publish the number of 'unreported removals' – where patients who no longer need an appointment because of a variety of reasons have been deleted from the list.
The Nuffield Trust think tank's analysis revealed as many as 245,000 people per month were being taken off the waiting list through these 'validation processes', and highlighted that fewer patients were being treated than added to the backlog.
The Government said this only accounted for 15 per cent of the fall in the backlog since it took charge last July, with the waiting list down from 7.6 million on last July.
The NHS said it had treated more than 100,000 people in June, up 2 per cent on the year before, but 141,000 patients joined the waiting list.
The number of people waiting the longest also fell, with just 1,100 waiting more than 18 months.
Dr Becks Fisher, director of research and policy at the Nuffield Trust, said the figures remain 'stubbornly high at 7.37 million and the NHS is struggling to keep pace with demand'.
'But the reported numbers on the planned treatment waiting list only show part of the picture,' she said. 'Our new analysis shows that waiting list reductions in previous months are not wholly due to increases in appointments being delivered. In fact, the NHS is still treating fewer patients than are being referred.'
She added: 'We should be under no illusions that despite delivering more appointments, the NHS is still not meeting patient demand.
'The Health Secretary has praised 'record investment and fundamental NHS reform' as the reasons behind reductions in the waiting list earlier this year, but there are lingering background causes that go unmentioned.'
Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, said the Government had gone beyond its promise to deliver two million more appointments.
'One year on, we have delivered almost an extra five million appointments. As a result, today's figures show that, despite record numbers of people coming forward for treatment, we are cutting waiting times, with the lowest number of patients waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment in three years,' he said.
Separate figures published by the NHS showed that 11,000 more appointments and procedures went ahead during junior – now called resident – doctor strikes last month, compared to last July's five-day walkout.
Mr Streeting will continue discussions with the British Medical Association throughout the summer in a bid to avert further industrial action.
The Health Secretary said the figures show the NHS 'was more resilient against last month's strike action than ever before'.
'We are getting on with the job of delivering progress in the face of strike action, and we will continue to put patients first,' he said.
Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS national medical director, said: 'It is very welcome news that the Resident Doctors Committee has returned to talks – and we hope this leads to a resolution that avoids further disruption for patients.'
Meanwhile, data on A&E wait times shows 76.4 per cent of patients were seen within four hours last month, up from 75.5 per cent in June.
The number of patients waiting 12 hours for a hospital bed fell to 35,467 from 38,683 a month earlier.
Despite this reduction, Dr Nick Murch, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, described the 12-hour wait figure as 'unacceptable'.
He said: 'Clinicians across the UK are reporting this week as one of the worst they have experienced, with no sign of the brief respite seen in the immediate aftermath of recent strike action, yet there remains no tangible and immediate action to address urgent workforce and capacity issues.
'Sadly, instead, recent commentary and reporting suggests a growing reliance on selective or misleading interpretations of NHS data, as highlighted this week in analysis by the Nuffield Trust, which calls into question claims the NHS is being turned around.'
Mr Tim Mitchell, president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said the waiting list rise was 'likely down to seasonal ebbs and flows'.
'However, as analysis published this week shows, the drop in waiting list numbers we've seen prior to this month doesn't necessarily mean more patients are being treated,' he said.
'The Government should be honest that a significant part of recent reductions reflects validation exercises rather than increased surgical activity.
'Ultimately, only further investment to expand the NHS' capacity will deliver substantial reductions in waiting times,' he added.
Helen Morgan MP, the Liberal Democrat health spokesman, said: 'This Government is doing no better than treading water on getting the waiting list down.
'These figures will add salt to the wounds of [Wednesday's] news that Labour appear to be cooking the books – boasting of treating phantom patients who have in fact died, moved or desperately had to seek treatment elsewhere.'