Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

'Extraordinary' NHS waiting list audit under way

'Extraordinary' NHS waiting list audit under way

Patients are advised to reply to validation letters or risk being removed from the list.

An "extraordinary" hospital waiting list audit is under way across Northern Ireland.

Tens of thousands of people are receiving letters as part of a validation exercise to update lists.

The majority of patients will be sent two letters before being removed.

The Royal College of GPs (RCGP) has advised patients to respond to their letters within two weeks to avoid the "significant risk" of losing their place on the list.

Almost 13,000 letters have already been sent as part of the audit, which is in "its very earliest stages".

The Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) has allocated £145,000 of non-recurrent funding to the five health trusts for the evaluation.

Among those already contacted are patients waiting 190 weeks for dermatology and three years for routine ENT appointments.

Nearly 300,000 people in Northern Ireland are on a waiting list for a first appointment with a consultant, according to recent Department of Health figures.

A total of 299,436 patients were waiting at the end of June, which is 23,500 more than the previous year.

More than a third of patients have waited for more than a year - targets state no-one should wait longer than 52 weeks.

Each trust will validate a number of lists.

Dr Grainne Doran, RCGP NI chairwoman, said the number of people receiving letters was "extraordinary because our waiting lists are extraordinarily long".

She said waiting lists validations were generally more common in Northern Ireland than the rest of the UK due to the scale of lists. She encouraged people to reply to the letters.

"There is a significant risk you will lose the appointment if you do not reply as that is how the system works. No action means you will be removed," she said.


'Private treatment'

She said patients may no longer need appointments because they have sought private treatment or their symptoms had cleared up since being placed on the list.

She said the exercise could impact on a GP's workload as the clinical responsibility for patients removed from the list would fall to GPs, who may then have to check patients' notes, going back five years in some cases.

A HSCB spokesperson said trusts were required to routinely undertake waiting list audits to ensure patients still require appointments and that contact details for patients are up to date.

The spokesperson said the validation process would help reduce the number of outpatient appointments lost when patient does not attend or wants to cancel their appointment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×