The number of Islanders waiting more than a year for elective surgery on the Island has fallen by more than 1,000.
It comes after elective surgeries were halted as a result of the Covid pandemic and a significant backlog built.
In April 2021, the number of Island patients waiting 52 weeks for their treatment hit 1,456.
Ahead of recovery target
Now, figures from January this year show the Isle of Wight NHS Trust is ahead of its recovery target.
By January 2022, the trust had planned to have 554 people facing the year-long wait but has, in reality, reduced the waiting list further than expected to 422.
The trust was told, at a meeting of its Quality and Performance Committee last month, that it was hoped the backlog would be removed by the end of March.
Cattell: Elective surgery programme was progressing well
Speaking at the Isle of Wight NHS Trust board meeting yesterday (Thursday), chief executive Darren Cattell said despite the increasing demand within the trust and challenges with the flow of patients, the elective surgery programme was progressing well.
The trust had introduced a number of new measures including weekend procedures and new CT and MRI scanners.
St Mary’s Hospital, in Newport, will also see the arrival of a new Opthalmology Theatre later this month.
Impact of care crisis
However, there are concerns numbers could rise again as the care crisis on the Island leads to gridlock within St Mary’s.
With nowhere in the care sector for patients to go after they have been treated within hospital, people are stuck in wards while care is sorted out meaning fewer patients can be admitted.
Last minute cancellations
The backlog of patients being discharged can lead to elective surgeries being cancelled as there are not enough beds in the wards.
Between October and December 2021, figures from NHS England show 67 elective operations were cancelled at the last minute on the Island for non-clinical reasons, like bed blocking, unavailable surgeons or the theatre was needed for an emergency.
Of those 67 patients, 57 were treated within 28 days of the cancellation but ten were not.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
Image: piron guillaume under CC BY 2.0
