NHS waiting lists rose for the third month running in June, when new Health Secretary Wes Streeting said it “will take some time to turn things around”.
England’s backlog has reached 7.62 million, up from 7.6 million in May, with almost all the progress made over the winter now to be made.
The increase was drawn up before Labor’s election victory, but highlights the party’s promise to fix the health service.
NHS England said A&E departments are having their busiest summer on record, with around 75,000 visits a day.
Saffron Cordery, from NHS Providers, added: “These figures reflect a really difficult summer for the NHS.”
Chief medical officer Professor Stephen Powis said: “It is clear that waiting for patients across a range of services remains unacceptable and there is much more to do.
“The team continues to work hard to provide the best care possible.”
These statistics show the monumental task facing the government… there are no quick fixes
Tim Gardner
The waiting list fell from an all-time high of 7.77 million in September to 7.54 million in February, but has since risen again.
Patient charities said cancer and heart disease patients still face unacceptably long waits.
NHS chiefs have attributed the setback in part to strikes by junior doctors, with three carried out so far this year.
The most recent strike by junior doctors, which lasted five days in June, was considered “irresponsible and dangerous” by the then health secretary, Victoria Atkins.
The NHS fears that current industrial action by GPs could further increase waiting lists as doctors reduce the number of appointments and send more patients straight to hospital.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “This government has already agreed a pay offer to end the junior doctors’ strike.
“In contrast, Conservative health ministers have not bothered to meet junior doctors since March.
“It will take time to turn the NHS around, but we are working night and day to get it back on track.”
Tim Gardner, of the Health Foundation think tank, said: “There are no quick fixes.
“These statistics show the monumental task facing the new government now.”
REFERENCE FAILURE JOBS ‘ADD DELAYS’
DOCTORS are making NHS delays worse by not sending patients to quieter hospitals, according to a recent analysis.
NHS rules give patients the right to be treated at any hospital that offers what they need, but many GPs simply refer them locally.
Research by the Independent Healthcare Providers Network shows that millions of people could reduce wait times with a short car ride.
There are 3.2 million people on waiting lists in the worst-performing third of hospitals in England.
IHPN calculated the distance these patients would need to travel to reach the quickest location in their region – and the time they could save.
It found that a long-waiting patient in the Midlands could save 11 weeks by moving to a hospital 18.8 miles away, reducing waiting times from 20 weeks to 8.5.
In the North West, a patient in a poorly performing hospital could reduce the wait from 21 to 14 weeks with a journey of 13.6 kilometres, he added.
The Department of Health said: “The NHS is broken and patients are not getting the information they need.”
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
