Labour’s claims to have hit its target on NHS appointments show why statistics are like a lamppost to a drunkard – they are used for support, rather than illumination.
The new government promised to deliver two million extra NHS appointments in its first year – and has succeeded, according to the figures.
But the 2.2 million extra appointments achieved between July and November 2024 were achieved in comparison with a time in 2023 when more than 12 days were lost to doctor strikes, which would have suppressed the number of available appointments; they were not achieved in comparison with normal NHS working days.
And waiting lists have hardly been affected by the 31.3 million operations, appointments and tests that took place in comparison with 29.1 million in the same period the previous year: they have fallen by only 20,000 – with 6.24 million patients waiting for 7.46 million treatments, as opposed to 6.28 million awaiting 7.48 million treatments.
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Wait – what? 40,000 fewer people are awaiting 20,000 fewer treatments? If the reduction in awaited treatments is lower than that of people waiting for them, does that mean that the remaining people who are waiting have been found to need more work, thereby half-filling the space that has been created?
If so, then a lot more work will be needed in order to eliminate the backlog.
Worse, the number of Accident and Emergency patients enduring long waits for treatment or assessment increased in January, with nearly 160,000 waiting longer than four hours for a bed to be found after a decision to admit them – many on chairs or trolleys.
Only 73 per cent of A&E patients were treated or assessed within four hours – well short of the 95 per cent target.
Was this because of the flu epidemic the UK suffered at that time (of which This Writer was a victim, although I did not go to A&E)?
And there are other inefficiences: one in five people who took a recent King’s Fund survey said they received a letter for an appointment after the date it was supposed to take place.
And nearly a quarter said they did not know who to contact while awaiting care.
The Liberal Democrats have criticised the new figures already – saying the government will not be able to reduce backlogs significantly until it finds a way to improve social care provision, thereby releasing hospital beds.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has already said proposals on long-term social care funding are unlikely to be delivered before 2028.
So these new statistics are not the cause for celebration that the government is pretending they are.
They suggest a little movement in the right direction but no more than that.
And it is clear that a lot more investment needs to go into the public health service – and not into the hands of private health profiteers, as Streeting is planning.
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NHS appointments show why statistics are like a lamppost to a drunkard
Labour’s claims to have hit its target on NHS appointments show why statistics are like a lamppost to a drunkard – they are used for support, rather than illumination.
The new government promised to deliver two million extra NHS appointments in its first year – and has succeeded, according to the figures.
But the 2.2 million extra appointments achieved between July and November 2024 were achieved in comparison with a time in 2023 when more than 12 days were lost to doctor strikes, which would have suppressed the number of available appointments; they were not achieved in comparison with normal NHS working days.
And waiting lists have hardly been affected by the 31.3 million operations, appointments and tests that took place in comparison with 29.1 million in the same period the previous year: they have fallen by only 20,000 – with 6.24 million patients waiting for 7.46 million treatments, as opposed to 6.28 million awaiting 7.48 million treatments.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Wait – what? 40,000 fewer people are awaiting 20,000 fewer treatments? If the reduction in awaited treatments is lower than that of people waiting for them, does that mean that the remaining people who are waiting have been found to need more work, thereby half-filling the space that has been created?
If so, then a lot more work will be needed in order to eliminate the backlog.
Worse, the number of Accident and Emergency patients enduring long waits for treatment or assessment increased in January, with nearly 160,000 waiting longer than four hours for a bed to be found after a decision to admit them – many on chairs or trolleys.
Only 73 per cent of A&E patients were treated or assessed within four hours – well short of the 95 per cent target.
Was this because of the flu epidemic the UK suffered at that time (of which This Writer was a victim, although I did not go to A&E)?
And there are other inefficiences: one in five people who took a recent King’s Fund survey said they received a letter for an appointment after the date it was supposed to take place.
And nearly a quarter said they did not know who to contact while awaiting care.
The Liberal Democrats have criticised the new figures already – saying the government will not be able to reduce backlogs significantly until it finds a way to improve social care provision, thereby releasing hospital beds.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has already said proposals on long-term social care funding are unlikely to be delivered before 2028.
So these new statistics are not the cause for celebration that the government is pretending they are.
They suggest a little movement in the right direction but no more than that.
And it is clear that a lot more investment needs to go into the public health service – and not into the hands of private health profiteers, as Streeting is planning.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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