Surgery for tens of thousands of patients set to be delayed

the health service is preparing to cancel tens of thousands of operations to make way for a surge in coronavirus patients.

hospitals have been told they may need to postpone all non-urgent surgery for months including hip, knee, hernia and cataract procedures.

Cancer treatment and other lifesaving operations would still go ahead but many other patients would be forced to endure lengthy delays.

the move would be extraordinary and the NhS has only ordered a mass cancellation of surgery once in recent times, during severe winter pressures in January 2018.

A decision is expected imminently and it reveals how the health service is putting itself on a war footing

ahead of an exceptional level of pressure over the next few weeks.

In a separate development, the Chief Medical Officer wrote to doctors yesterday telling them they may need to work outside their normal area of expertise.

Predicting an ‘an established significant epidemic’, Professor Chris Whitty said medical professionals would need to be ‘flexible in what they do.’ He said: ‘It may entail working in unfamiliar circumstances or surroundings or working in clinical areas outside of their usual practice.’

Examples could involve surgeons or specialists whose normal roles are scaled back being transferred to general wards, medical assessment units or intensive care.

The Department of Health stressed no-one would be forced to work outside their normal area expertise if they were unhappy.

A decision on the cancellation of operations is expected imminently and thousands of patients awaiting non- urgent surgery or outpatient appointments would be affected.

The Health Service Journal – which uncovered details of the measures – said the suspension could last for several months while the outbreak reaches its peak.

NHS England would not put a figure on the numbers of patients who might be caught up but in January 2018, experts suggested 50,000 operations would be cancelled a month. The cancellations would come at a time when waiting lists are already at their highest in 13 years.

Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals, said cancelling surgery to enable theatres to be turned into wards. He told the BBC’s Newsnight: ‘If you stopped doing elective surgery, you could convert theatres, you could convert resuscitation rooms, recovery areas into places where you could provide intensive care.’ Professor Derek

Alderson, President of the royal College of Surgeons of England said the college was ‘ working closely with NHS England to identify capacity – both space in hospitals and staff capacity. Thousands of patients are waiting for essential operations, and it is important for their health and wellbeing that we continue to try to reduce the backlog of planned operations.’

Some trusts have already decided unilaterally that they will postpone certain procedures.