Huge backlog in operations resulting from lack of PPE

NHS Providers chief executive, Chris Hopson, has said that a lack of vital protective equipment and long waits for coronavirus test results are stopping hospitals from tackling a huge backlog in operations.

Speaking to the Guardian, Hopson discussed the cases of patients whose surgery has been postponed because of the pandemic having to face even longer delays because hospitals are having to wait for as long as 13 days for the outcome of tests.

He blamed ministers for repeated failures to ensure easy availability of fast-turnaround testing for NHS staff, while trusts have warned about the lack of adequate supplies of surgical gowns since the pandemic began. He also warned that ’the gap between the tone and content of the government’s statements on testing and the difficult reality on the ground is painfully wide and needs to be closed quickly’.

Approximately 4.2 million people in England are waiting to have a non-urgent procedure.

Hopson said: “We can’t restart NHS services as quickly as everyone would like because of the wide range of constraints trusts are facing, including shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing. My concern about reopening the NHS is that people are massively underestimating how difficult and complex it’s going to be to restart the full range of services and levels of activity that are needed. People think it’s like flicking a light switch back on again but it absolutely isn’t.

“It’s fiendishly complicated and will take a lot longer than people think because there are a number of different problems that have to be sorted first. We need to ensure that hospitals are safe for people without coronavirus who need to be treated, including those who need elective surgery.”