Surgeons echo First Minister: NHS waiting lists must be the priority in Wales

The waiting list for referral to consultant-led hospital treatment in Wales has risen to another record high, reaching almost 800,000 in July 2024. 

Surgeons have said urgent action is needed to address the escalating waiting list crisis in Wales, including faster progress on the establishment of surgical hubs, which separate planned and emergency care, so operations can go ahead when hospitals are under pressure. New Stats Wales data published today shows that the waiting list increased by over 5,000 from June to July 2024. It is now over 39,000 higher than the same time last year. 

The Royal College of Surgeons of England has welcomed the new Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care in Wales, Jeremy Miles MS, and called on him to invest in surgical capacity immediately so that patients aren’t left waiting and worried for months, and even years, on end. 

The data shows there were over 164,000 patient pathways waiting more than one year in July. This number was 2.5% higher than last month. Just over 23,800 were waiting for more than two years, which is a rise of 1.8% on the previous month.

Responding to the figures, Professor Jon Barry, Director in Wales at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said:   

“Eluned Morgan is absolutely right – waiting lists must be the priority. With waits for treatment in Wales reaching another record high, surgeons are increasingly concerned about the disruption long waits are causing to patients' lives, and the risk that they may deteriorate while waiting. 

“As Jeremy Miles takes on the health brief, he can make a lasting change to NHS waits in Wales. He must make boosting surgical capacity in Wales his absolute priority. This includes investing in staff and speeding up the roll-out of surgical hubs, which separate out planned and emergency care, so essential operations can go ahead.” 

The ‘patient pathway’ data released by Stats Wales covers the period of time from referral by a GP or other medical practitioner to hospital for treatment in the NHS in Wales. The data includes time spent waiting for any hospital appointments, tests, surgery, scans, or other procedures.  


ENDS   


Notes to editors:  

1. There were 796,631 patient pathways waiting to start treatment at the end of July 2024. There were 791,511 patient pathways waiting to start treatment at the end of June 2024. There were 757,135 patient pathways waiting to start treatment at the end of July 2023. 
2. To view full, historical Stats Wales Referral to Treatment Waiting Times
3. Data for patients waiting over one and two years to start treatment is drawn from the Welsh Government’s NHS Activity and Performance Summary: July and August 2024
4. In March 2016, Stats Wales changed some of the terminology used in referral to treatment reporting. Previously, when publishing these statistics, they used the terminology patients. However, now, it is possible that a person could be on several different lists waiting for different conditions – i.e., there would be one patient but more than one pathway. Due to the RTT dataset being an aggregate data collection, Stats Wales says they are not able to measure the number of unique patients. Therefore, they are using the terminology ‘patient pathways’, to reflect the fact that one person can be on multiple waiting lists.
5. The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) provides world-class education, assessment, and development to 30,000 surgeons, dental professionals, and members of the wider surgical and dental care teams, at all stages of their career. Our vision is to see excellent surgical care for everyone. We do this by setting professional standards, facilitating research, and championing the best outcomes for patients.   
6. For more information, please contact the RCS England press office: telephone: 020 7869 6054/6047/6061; email: pressoffice@rcseng.ac.uk; out-of-hours media enquiries: 0207 869 6056.