'No one deserves to be left waiting": The emotional toll of NHS waiting lists
Michelle Turnock, from Merseyside, waited nearly three years for breast reconstruction surgery following cancer. The long wait took a serious toll on her mental health.
The mum-of-two finally had her operation in May.
'The staff were amazing,' Michelle said.
I first spoke to Michelle as she waited for surgery in 2024. Now recovering, she rewatched her original interview from before the surgery.
When asked if she recognised herself, she replied: 'No, it was a scary time, I just didn't know whether I was coming or going, we were very much in limbo."
Michelle's story is not unique. In the North West of England alone, more than one million people are waiting for NHS care, and over 40,000 of them have been waiting more than a year.
Gail Wild from Melling also knows what it means to wait and to fight for the care that she needs. She reached out after seeing Michelle's story on the telly.
With a family history of cancer and a positive BRCA2 gene result, Gail made the difficult decision to have preventative surgery, including a double mastectomy, so that she could be around longer for her sons.
She said: "It was too emotionally upsetting waiting for results that you think, Is this the year I'm going to get cancer?"
But when it came to reconstruction, she hit wall after wall. Her local hospital said no, while other hospitals turned her away too - some didn't even offer the surgery.
Asked what that was like, Gail replied: 'Soul-destroying. I didn't know whether I was going to get the surgery.
"People need the surgery for a valid reason, I'm very high risk. I don't want to get cancer, and I know if I did get cancer, I would cost the NHS an awful lot more money."
Eventually, a hospital in Sheffield agreed to carry out the surgery. It changed her life.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he acknowledges the long delays on the NHS and said his government is taking action.
He said: "I am really pleased that we are making progress bringing the waiting lists down, but I don't want to diminish the experience of anyone in the North West who is on a waiting list.
"All I can say is this, we are working as hard as we can, sleeves rolled up, and I have them in my mind's eye when I take the decisions that I do in relation to the NHS, we're determined to tackle this problem."
There are signs of progress. At Warrington Hospital, a new 'super clinic' model allows patients to be seen, assessed, and booked for surgery in one visit.
The Gynaecology Super Clinics, introduced by Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals in May 2024, have cleared the hospitals' Covid-19 backlog and are ensuring that patients receive appointments within weeks.
Since the launch, the Super Clinics have seen more than 1,500 patients, with 80% starting or completing their treatment plan at the clinic.
The Super Clinic is part of the national 'Further Faster 20' initiative. Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals are one of 20 trusts taking part in the initiative to transform patient pathways and improve access to treatment.
Dr Anuradha Leburu, Senior Gynaecologist, said: "It has been a dream come true, actually we've been trying this for so many years.
"It has come through actually for us and we are so pleased as clinicians were pleased and the patient, look at the feedback we get, they're very very happy."
For Michelle and Gail, finally getting surgery gave them more than just physical healing. It gave them hope.
Michelle now has a new job and is planning a holiday she has put off for three years. Gail, on the other hand, has been planning a wedding and looking forward to wearing her wedding dress.
They want others to advocate for themselves, try different hospitals and push to be seen. They also want hospitals to do more to help their patients.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: 'We inherited a situation where too many people are waiting too long for care, but we are working at pace to turn this around.
'The latest figures show that NHS waiting lists fell in May for the first time in 17 years and have dropped by more than 260,000 since July 2024.
'This recovery through our Plan for Change is only just beginning, and we are working hard to improve access to services and bring down waits for treatments.'
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