For the first time in 17 years, NHS waiting lists fell in the month of April, whilst the waiting list has hit its lowest level in two years.
New data published on Thursday (June 12), showed the NHS waiting list has fallen to 7.39 million, down from 7.42 million. This was the first time the waiting list has seen a reduction in April since 2008, excluding the first year of the pandemic.
In a press release, the NHS said the figures show staff are working to “turn the tide,” with health chiefs praising staff for tackling demand and driving progress for patients.
Keir Starmer wrote in a post on X that the new data shows Labour’s “plan for change in action.”
NHS staff have been praised for delivering record numbers of tests and checks and as they faced the second busiest month ever in A&E.
Meghana Pandit, NHS England’s Co-National Medical Director (Secondary Care), said more planned treatments being delivered was helping to “turn the tide” for patients as the health service continues to clear the backlog.
Some 1.45m treatments were delivered in April, up 3% on last year, and the average waiting time for planned treatment is 13.3 weeks, the lowest level since July 2022. This was despite services facing greater demand as 2.3% more patients were added to the waiting list per working day on last year.
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Pandit said: “Despite another huge wave of demand across NHS services, today’s data suggests that reform and the hard work of our staff is helping to buck the seasonal trend, with an atypical April drop, seeing waiting lists hit a two-year low.
“Thanks to NHS staff who have delivered another record month of tests and checks while facing the second busiest month ever recorded in A&E, continuing to make progress in treating patients faster as we work to drive reform across elective and emergency care.
“We are determined to continue on this trajectory for patients as staff work to turn the tide for patients waiting for care, and while huge pressure on services remains, we are starting to see a real difference across our services – this is just the start of the work we’re doing to reform care and deliver improvements for patients.”
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “We are putting the NHS on the road to recovery after years of soaring waiting times, by providing record investment and fundamental NHS reform.
“Thanks to our interventions and the hard work of NHS staff, the overall waiting list has now fallen in April for the first time in 17 years – dropping by almost a quarter of a million since we took office.
“This is just the start. We’ve delivered millions of extra appointments since July, we are pushing on with our mission to get the NHS working for patients once again as we deliver our Plan for Change.”