As NHS waiting list patients reach a record-breaking 7.75 million in August 2023, frustration continues to upsurge across the United Kingdom regarding attention to medical services.
Tim Mitchell, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said “NHS staff continue to do all that they can to reduce waiting lists amid extremely challenging circumstances”.
Following this has led health officials to take a more active approach for those patients waiting months for treatment.
Patients who have been waiting for more than 40 weeks in England will now be offered the option of receiving treatment in another part of the country, as 400,000 are set to be contacted in the coming weeks and queried if they would be willing to travel and how far.
Public Response:
Recent polls show that a quarter of all British adults are on an NHS waiting list, leaving millions individually affected by health services.
Political activist group, 38 Degrees, took a current survey concluding that voters rate the NHS as their second most important national issue with an additional 24% of respondents admitting to having to wait more than six months for treatment.
With the public already tired of waiting, the frustration will continue to expand like this one mother stating that her “children have to travel over 100 miles to see the orthodontist and waiting list (is) at least 4 years!”
Negative views towards the NHS wait times pre-existing, Health Secretary Steve Barclay hopes that this solution will help” tackle waiting lists and improve access to healthcare”.
Officials, like Louise Ansari a member of Healthwatch England, have welcomed the new movement “as long as any additional costs incurred would be covered”.
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