‘Record number’ of non-urgent operations cancelled at last minute in English hospitals, figures show Data from NHS England shows more than 20,000 non-urgent operations were cancelled in the three months to September

A record number of patients have had their planned operations cancelled at the last minute in England’s hospitals, according to latest figures.

NHS England data shows 20,963 non-urgent operations, such as hip or knee procedures, were cancelled by NHS trusts across England in the three months to September.

The cancellations were for non-clinical reasons including staff shortages and a lack of beds.

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Record number

The figure is up 13 per cent from 18,568 in the same three-month period the year before and is the worst since records began.

The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) blamed underfunding, fewer beds and staff shortages for the rising number of cancellations.

Professor Derek Alderson, president of the RCS, said it was “incredibly disappointing” for patients and staff when operations are cancelled.

He said: “To have an operation cancelled after waiting many weeks or months not only puts the patient’s health at risk but often has important social consequences such as more time off work.

“Patients deserve to have their treatment within a reasonable timeframe.

“However, the number of cancelled operations is rising, because the NHS has been working to an ever tighter budget, with fewer hospital beds and more gaps in staff rotas.

“This is the result of several years of inadequate investment in hospital infrastructure and beds.”

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University Hospitals Birmingham had the highest number of cancellations at 843 – the equivalent of 65 every week.

According to the NHS Constitution, hospitals must reschedule cancelled operations within a maximum period of 28 days.

If they are unable to do so, they must fund the treatment with another hospital and forfeit their payment from the NHS clinical commissioning group that funds healthcare in the area.

However, 1,551 patients (7 per cent) were not treated within this timeframe between July and September.

‘NHS deserves investment’

At Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, almost a third of patients (20 out of 68) were left waiting longer than the four-week target.

This gave it the second-worst performance rate, after Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust – where both of the patients whose operations were cancelled were still waiting for treatment after 28 days.

Prof Alderson continued: “The public love the NHS and believe it deserves to be invested in.

“The next Government must listen to what the public expect, which is a proper level of investment in our much-treasured, but over-extended health service.”

An NHS spokesman said: “These figures reflect significant increases in demand for both emergency and planned care, but despite this, the number of cancelled urgent operations remains low set against the millions of operations performed in the NHS each year.”

Additional reporting from PA Media.