Elective recovery gets underway (HSJ, 25 November 2024)

Summary

The clearance of England’s elective waiting lists accelerated again in September, with the reported referral-to-treatment waiting list shrinking by 195,000 patient pathways year-on-year, up from 103,000 to the end of August. About 50,000 of the reported reduction was caused by counting changes early in 2024 (when community services and a large mental health trust dropped out of the data) but the lion’s share of the improvement is real and welcome. However, the pace will need to be even higher in 2025-26, writes Rob Findlay in this HSJ article.