Seven million people 'will be on hospital waiting lists by autumn'
Seven million people will be on hospital waiting lists by autumn because of coronavirus delays, report warns
- More than 7 million people could be on hospital waiting lists before October
- The daunting figure comes from Analysis by the healthcare provider Medefer
- It comes after medics warned up to 2,700 cancers were being missed weekly
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
Hospital waiting lists could see a backlog of 7.2 million people by autumn due to lockdown delays.
A study into the harm done by the Covid-19 restrictions suggested that delays caused by the virus have meant 1.3 million extra patients were added to waiting lists to see specialists, on top of the 4.4 million people in February.
As many as 3.5 million people could need an outpatient appointment as services return this month, and the entire NHS waiting list could surpass 7 million before October, analysis by healthcare provider Medefer estimates.
Chairman of the British Medical Association Dr Chaand Nagpaul told the Sunday Times the findings highlighted the fears of many doctors that non-coronavirus patients were not being properly looked after.
He said: ‘Many ill patients are not getting the care they so desperately need now — and, crucially, risking their conditions getting worse, and with some maybe even dying as a result.’
Professor Derek Alderson from the Royal College of Surgeons of England said that patients who could wait for a month four weeks ago will not be able to endure constant postponement.
PPE supplies arrive from Tianjin, China at Bournemouth International Airport today
Last month medics warned that up to 2,700 cancers were being missed every week as the numbers being referred by doctors for urgent hospital appointments or checks had dropped by 75 per cent.
Professor Karol Sikora, a cancer specialist, had warned that the impact of the coronavirus outbreak could result in 50,000 cancer deaths.
And in April Cancer Research UK figures showed the numbers of patients being referred urgently to hospital with suspicious symptoms has dropped by 75 per cent since the start of the outbreak.
Sarah Woolnough from Cancer Research said: ‘They have absolutely plummeted.
‘People are really worried about going into a health setting. In a way, it’s a measure of the effectiveness of the message, “Stay Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives”.
‘You begin to see the unintended consequences. You’ve got two problems going on. You’ve got people not seeking help and screening has been paused. So you’re not detecting cancers early in the way you would like to.
Medical staff outside Mater Hospital in Belfast join in the applause during the nationwide Clap for Carers amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis
‘What’s so worrying for us is that we spent the past decade saying, ‘if you suspect cancer, please seek help’.
Steven McIntosh, from Macmillan Cancer Support, added: ‘There’s really worrying evidence that fewer people are coming forward and getting cancer symptoms diagnosed.
‘If you’ve experienced signs of cancer you must urgently contact your GP.’
Hospitals have been given the order to resume services that came to a stop in March to allow more capacity during the ongoing crisis.
The action led to the postponement of millions of operations. Doctors have said some may have already died due to the drastic measure.
Chief executive of the NHS Confederation, Niall Dickson, said that resuming services would not simply be a matter of returning to normal – and could be ‘more complex and challenging’ than preparing the NHS for the coronavirus outbreak.
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