Contrary to the promises of the British government, waiting times in hospitals continue to rise. At the end of July, 7.68 million people in England were waiting for routine treatment – more than at any time since registration began in August 2007, the NHS announced on Thursday.
It was also the eighth monthly increase in a row. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had announced that waiting times would be significantly reduced. The NHS has been chronically understaffed and underfunded for years. The government has promised reforms. But it will probably take some time before this is implemented. In addition, strikes in several parts of the NHS have increased backlogs.
The government wanted the situation to have improved since April
The number of people waiting more than twelve or even more than 18 months to start their treatment has increased again compared to June. According to the cabinet, waiting times of more than a year and a half should actually be a thing of the past from April.
The time it takes for an ambulance to respond to emergency calls for a heart attack or stroke was significantly lower in July at an average of 31.8 minutes than a year ago (42.6 minutes in August 2022), but much higher than before the pandemic ( 21.3 minutes in August 2019).
“Record numbers of patients are waiting for medical care and are facing unacceptably long wait times, whether for surgery, an ambulance or in the emergency room,” said Labor health spokesperson Wes Streeting. “For millions of patients in England, the NHS is no longer there when they need it.”
Source: Krone
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