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£50m to end long waits for hip placements
A drive to end long waits for patients requiring orthapedic surgery will mean an extra 41,000 operations per year. Around one in four patients on the overall NHS waiting list need this type of surgery.
The funding will be invested in NHS orthopaedic services, including those in NHS Diagnosis and Treatment Centres (DTCs), and spent on modernising theatres and buying new equipment or upgrading existing facilities.
Official figures at the end of March 2003 indicate that 254,496 orthopaedic patients were waiting for inpatient treatment in England - a substantial fall of almost 10,000 since last December.
Around £25m will be used to target those NHS Trusts who have historically struggled to cut orthopaedic waiting times and those who have the ability to deliver extra capacity for the NHS. The remaining £25m will be used to boost the capacity in DTCs which are focusing on orthopaedics. For example:
- Southampton University Hospitals Trust will receive £1.2m for ward alterations, expanding capacity for major/intermediate surgery and to help to expand their outpatient unit. This will result in an extra 1,438 operations per year.
- Mid-Essex Trust will receive £2.8m for additional theatres and preparation rooms. This capacity boost will deliver an extra 2,700 operations per year.
Health Secretary Alan Milburn said:
“The extra resources and reforms we are putting into the NHS are reducing both waiting times and waiting lists. Patients are beginning to see the results in better, faster services.
“Over a quarter of a million people - mainly elderly patients - are currently waiting for orthopaedic surgery. This extra investment to cut waiting times further will make a big difference in improved quality of life for many people.”
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