Patients in England waited 6% longer for elective operations in 2011, says report

Waiting times for eight common elective operations in England have risen for the second year running with 18 628 fewer procedures carried out in 2011 compared with 2010, shows an audit carried out by the Patients Association.

The figures cast doubt on claims by government that changes being imposed on the NHS and demands for efficiency savings will not affect patient care. The association is calling for action to ensure that waiting times do not increase this year and says that greater transparency is needed on waiting times in individual clinical areas.

Altogether 95 out of the 150 acute trusts in England responded to the freedom of information request from the association asking for data on waiting times and number of operations on eight operations: hip, knee, hernia, tonsillectomy, adenoid, gallstone, …