Long waits causing more complex surgery

A new survey from the Royal College of Surgeons has revealed that 60 per cent of surgeons had to undertake more complex surgery because of long waits.

Roughly one third of surgeons registered in Northern Ireland took part in the NI waiting times survey, which showed that more than 93 per cent of surgeons said there were staff in their trust unable to operate because there were not enough beds to admit patients, while 64 per cent of surgeons had to cancel operations at the last minute.

The top three reasons respondents cited for last minute cancellations were: a lack of ward beds; a lack of operating theatre capacity/access; and a lack of staff (e.g. surgeon, anaesthetist, theatre staff, nurses, physios).

Waiting times figures in Northern Ireland show that of the 90,514 patients waiting to be admitted to hospital for either day case or inpatient treatment in December 2019, almost a third (27,090) are waiting more than a year for their admission. This represents an increase of 26 per cent compared to December 2018.

Mark Taylor, NI director of the RCS, said: “It is universally accepted that the waiting times in Northern Ireland are the worst in the UK. The increasing demand, reduced capacity and budgetary constraints have been highlighted as potential causes. In our survey of surgeons in NI, frustration was expressed about a lack of hospital beds for elective surgery, operating theatre capacity and wider workforce shortages. All too often operations were cancelled at the last minute. Surgeons also expressed concern that at times they had to perform more complex surgery as a result of the length of time patients waited on a list”.

“We welcome the Minister’s intention to address the waiting lists as a priority. Surgeons across Northern Ireland stand ready to make change happen and improve our health service. The experience and expertise of surgeons should be utilised to develop a sustainable, joined-up plan to address the waiting list backlog and ensure that transformation of the system ensures we are not in this position in the future.”