50,000+ waiting 9 months or more for medical treatment

MORE than 50,000 North Wales patients have waited in excess of nine months for treatment to start, according to the latest figures.

The stats, up to January this year, show more than 221,000 patients in Wales have waited more than 36 weeks since referral.

Mr Richard Johnson, Wales director of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said the situation was “dire”.

A year ago Betsi Cadwaladr health board had a waiting list of 100,764, with the procedures of 77,302 delayed by up to 26 weeks.

Another 11,034 had been on the list for 26-36 weeks.

As of January this year, the total waiting list had only increased by around 13,000, perhaps signalling fewer people than normal contacted GPs because of the pandemic.

The biggest change comes in the length of time people have been waiting, with 50,143 on the list for at least nine months, while a year ago that figure was 12,248.

Staff have been looking at the most clinically serious cases first, which does not always mean those waiting longest.

Gill Harris, Betsi’s deputy chief executive, said: “Covid19 has had a significant impact on services throughout the NHS, in particular on our ability to provide planned care.

“We are working to develop plans to increase our capacity for reducing waiting times.

“This includes looking at more activity over evenings and weekends, and sourcing additional capacity for scanning and assessment.

“In the longer term, we are developing diagnostic and treatment centres which help us tackle backlogs, alleviate pressure on our district general hospitals and treat highly vulnerable patients.”