The Covid backlog in the East of England has fallen for a second month in a row thanks to the huge efforts of NHS staff across the region, latest data shows.

NHS England’s monthly performance data shows that the overall waiting list in the East of England fell by more than 17,000 – a reduction of 1.8% to around 940,000 in November from approximately 957,000 in October. That’s in addition to a drop of almost 29,000 the previous month and at a faster rate than the national average (a 1.2% reduction).

NHS staff in the east delivered well over 173,000 treatments in November, the highest monthly activity on record (since April 2019), and more than 11,500 compared to before the pandemic (approximately 162,000 in November 2019).

Dr Edward Morris, regional medical director for the NHS in the East of England, said:

“Treating a record number of patients in a month shows the progress we are making and just how seriously we are about tackling the waiting list backlog caused by Covid.

“There’s more to do of course, but the care provided by the NHS across the East of England is all the more impressive when you take into account the increases in demand, recurring winter pressures and the impact of industrial action through the last year or so.

“It’s been a challenging start to 2024 with the longest set of strikes in the NHS’s history, but our dedicated staff continue to work incredibly hard to care for the people in our region and get the waiting lists down further.”

There were also more diagnostic tests in November, with almost 265,000 patients receiving these vital tests or checks for symptoms – up 23% on the same month pre-pandemic, when less than 215,000 people were seen in November 2019.

Ambulance times also tumbled in the East of England last month compared to the year before, with urgent incidents like heart attacks and strokes (Category 2 calls) receiving an ambulance on average 75 minutes faster than in December 2022. This is despite much higher demand, with over 9,000 more Category 2 callouts than the same period the previous year (43,189 in December 2023 vs 33,983 in December 2022).

The focus on driving down waiting lists has continued into the new year despite the significant disruption of industrial action over the Christmas and New Year period.

Figures for the first week of January also show that measures in the NHS’s urgent and emergency care recovery plan are working alongside extensive and robust winter plans, with the time lost to ambulance handover delays in the region down by almost 40% on the same week last year, from 4,940 to 3,022 hours.

Latest figures published today show that last week there was another significant drop in handover delays at hospitals of 40%, with the number of hours lost down to 1,814.

Measures rolled out across the region include more ambulance hours, extra beds, and innovative use of the NHS’s world-leading virtual ward programme.

Data released last week showed the impact of the six-day strike by junior doctors between 3 January and 9 January, with almost 13,000 appointments and operations in the East of England having to be rescheduled.

We encourage people to contact their GP or NHS 111 with any health concerns and only using 999 and A&E in emergencies.

Background

• See the NHS England » Monthly operational statistics – January 2024 for more details.
• The latest weekly sit rep data is available here.
• For more information contact england.eastcommunications@nhs.net