New plans announced by the UK Government which aim to reduce waiting times for NHS hospital appointments and procedures

Exciting and ambitious new plans have been announced by the UK Government which aim to reduce waiting times for NHS hospital appointments and procedures.

With waiting lists currently standing at around 7.5 million, with more than three million people having waited longer than the 18-week target, the Government this week announced new measures to reduce the backlog including the creation of more community-based diagnostic hubs and additional surgical hubs to enable more treatment outside of hospitals.

Community diagnostic centres aim to treat patients more quickly, closer to home and without relying on hospitals. Expanding the network to include more CDCs will provide up to half-a-million additional appointments each year, it is estimated.

Under the plans, more surgical hubs will also be created to focus on common, less complex procedures, such as cataract surgeries and some orthopaedic work. These hubs – such as those created previously by Vanguard Healthcare Solutions at Newcastle Westgate Cataract Centre, Royal Preston and the award-nominated South Warwickshire University NHS FT - are ring-fenced from other parts of the hospital. This means operating-theatre time is not lost if should emergency cases arise.

The plans aim to reduce the number of long waits by nearly half a million over the next 12 months and for 92% of patients to begin treatment, or be given the all-clear within 18 weeks by the end of this Parliament.

Also among the plans is the creation of a Partnership Agreement between the independent sector and the NHS. The partnership reaffirms the mutual commitment of the NHS and independent sector to work together to tackle elective care backlogs, and to expand areas of joint working. It will focus on orthopaedic joint operations and gynaecological procedures.

Vanguard Healthcare Solutions Chief Executive Officer Chris Blackwell-Frost welcomed the plans and said: “Vanguard is, and has always been, focused entirely on healthcare. Our mobile, modular and staffing solutions have been successfully supporting the NHS to deliver essential patient care for more than 25 years.

“Today we are proud to be one of the independent providers who have signed this new and important Partnership Agreement with the NHS, reaffirming our pledge to work together to deliver the best possible patient outcomes.

“As healthcare organisations, we have long shared the same focus and objectives; to work together seamlessly to provide the very best and safest environments for patient treatment and care and to ensure as many people as possible receive these in as timely a way as possible.

“These new plans set out how, by continuing to work together, and through creating additional capacity within the NHS - whether that be in the shape of additional CDCs, surgical hubs or assisting with the provision of experienced and qualified nursing and support staff - we can help our NHS colleagues drive down waiting times and deliver even more high quality essential patient care.”