• NHS staff praised for delivering national waiting list target as a third of the drop in waiting lists achieved in the Midlands
• Overall number of patients waiting for treatment falls by 6.5% in a year across our region compared to 4.2% nationally
• Progress on the waiting list comes on the back of a year where the NHS performed the highest number of surgeries, tests, checks and elective appointments.

Patients in the Midlands are waiting less time for operations as NHS staff in local hospitals have worked tirelessly to slash waiting lists this year.

The Government set a national target for 65 per cent of patients to be seen within 18 weeks for elective treatment by March this year. The latest figures, published today, confirm that the NHS has delivered this goal, despite needing to postpone elective appointments, tests and surgeries due to Industrial Action.

The region accounts for the greatest reduction in the national waiting list

In the Midlands the waiting list has fallen by 6.5% in a year compared to 4.2% across the country. And while the national waiting list has gone down by almost more than 312,000, more than 90,000 (28%) of these patients were under the care of hospitals in our region – more than any other region

The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust is one of the most improved acute providers in the country, where the number of patients waiting for treatment has fallen by more than 7,000 in a year. Over the same period University Hospital Birmingham has reduced its waiting list by more than 18,000.

Dr Jess Sokolov, Regional Medical Director for NHS England in the Midlands, said: “Staff working across the NHS have pulled out all the stops to help people who have often been waiting too long for lifechanging treatment.

“Delays to planned procedures have a massive human cost in terms of the growing loss of independence or risk of accidents as a patient’s health deteriorates. That’s why we want more people to be seen within the 18-week time frame and return to their best health as soon as possible.

“I want to thank everyone working in local health services for their commitment to improving standards while carrying out more tests, checks and elective appointments than any other year.”

Notes to editors

• NHS England national release: NHS England » “Huge moment” as the health service hits 18-week target amid half-a-million waiting list drop
• Referral to treatment dashboard: RTT Dashboard – NHS England public data gateway