NHS ‘invisible waiting list’ as three million patients await specialist appointments
New data shines light on ‘staggering’ NHS waiting list
- An analysis by MBI Health reveals that three million patients in England have not yet received an appointment after being referred by their GP to specialist care.
- This figure accounts for nearly half of the 6.23 million patients currently on NHS waiting lists, leading the Patients Association to dub it an “invisible waiting list”.
- Delays in initial assessments are contributing to late diagnoses, worsening patient symptoms, and increased strain on emergency services, and the Patients Association describes the problem as “staggering”.
- Approximately 70 per cent of referral-to-treatment pathways involve patients who have not been seen, with one million of these three million having waited over 18 weeks.
- While the Department of Health and Social Care noted progress in reducing overall waiting lists, it did not comment on the specific issue of the three million unseen patients.