A senior NHS leader in the North East has welcomed progress bringing down hospital waiting lists - and explained he thinks virtual appointments for outpatients are the next step to recover backlogs stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Around the country there are now just 2,777 people who have waited more than two years for NHS treatment - that's fallen from 22,500 at the start of this year. The NHS has also said that of those patients still waiting, more than half had chosen to defer their treatment with many others "complex cases".
Complex cases include spinal surgeries - which are the kind of cases hardest hit by long waits at the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust. That trust has brought the number of people waiting more than two years down to 41 - the figure was 241 at the end of 2021.
Sir James Mackey - chief executive at the neighbouring Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust is also NHS England's national elective recovery director. Marking the fact that fewer than 3,000 people nationally had now been waiting more than two years for a medical procedure, he said: "Reaching this milestone is testament to the hard work of NHS staff across the country, who have treated tens of thousands of the longest waits in the six months since we launched our ambitious recovery plan.
"From dedicated surgery hubs to increase the number of procedures carried out each day, to day case surgeries allowing people to recover in the comfort of their homes, and ensuring treatment transfers can happen for those patients prepared to travel, NHS staff are doing everything possible to bring down long waits for patients even further.
"We knew the waiting list would initially continue to grow as more people come forward for care who may have held off during the pandemic, but the NHS is determined to make the best possible use of the additional investment to address the backlogs and provide timely, expert care to as many people as possible, and virtually eliminating two year waits shows we are continuing to make good progress for patients."
And speaking to the Health Service Journal, Sir James added that he felt more of use of virtual outpatient appointments - which could be conducted by staff around the country, rather than necessarily at a patient's local NHS provider - would be a key tactic in reducing the numbers of people who have been waiting for more than a year and a half. The next national NHS target is to eliminate those waits by March next year.
Speaking to the industry publication, Sir James said: "We will be pairing up organisations so that organisations with capacity can help those with the biggest challenges from a virtual outpatient perspective. There still is a lot to work through [on virtual outpatients], we’re going to be testing the concept… We need to work through how all the wiring and plumbing needs to work. For example, what happens if the patient needs a diagnostic locally, having seen a clinician virtually in another part of the country?"
The NHS leader added he wanted to encourage patients to ask about virtual appointments to help "shift the model".
NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard added that reducing the backlogs had only been possible because the NHS has reformed the way it works and been "using innovative techniques and adopting pioneering technology like robot surgery". She also referenced "mutual aid" arrangements, where hospital trusts have worked with their neighbours to take on patients in specialities where others are struggling to get appointments.
Ms Pritchard added: "The next phase will focus on patients waiting longer than 18 months, building on the fantastic work already done, and while it is a significant challenge our remarkable staff have shown that when we are given the tools and resources we need, the NHS delivers for our patients."
Recently appointed Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said bringing down the backlogs was "one of my top priorities" and he thanked the NHS staff who had "worked incredibly hard to get us here – despite the significant challenges".
He added: “We are working hard with the NHS to get our health system back to peak performance, by growing the healthcare workforce, opening new community diagnostic centres and surgical hubs across the country, and investing in innovative technology to ensure patients can access the treatment they need while saving staff time."
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