Wigan hospital trust: All the key numbers for February, as think tank warns health and care system needs "fixing"

It comes as a health policy think tank warned England's health and care system needs "fixing".

NHS England figures show 50,098 patients were waiting for non-urgent elective operations or treatment at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust (WWL) at the end of February – down from 50,630 in January, and 53,077 in February 2024.

Of those, 2,129 (four per cent) had been waiting for longer than a year.

The median waiting time from referral to treatment at WWL was 16 weeks at the end of February – the same as in January.

Nationally, 6.24 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of February — down from 6.25 million at the end of January.

It means the waiting list for routine hospital treatment in England has fallen for the sixth month in a row.

Danielle Jefferies, senior analyst at The King’s Fund, welcomed the declining number of patients waiting for treatment, but warned the health and care system still needs "fixing".

She said: "Any direct improvements to hospital services will need to come hand-in-hand with the broader reforms needed to create a truly sustainable health service.

"Reforming social care, preventing ill health and bolstering community services outside hospitals will all be crucial to 'fixing' the health and care system and reversing the staggering collapse in public satisfaction with the NHS."

Separate figures show 1.7 million patients in England were waiting for a key diagnostic test in February – a rise on 1.6 million in January.

At WWL 9,654 patients were waiting for one of 14 standard tests, such as an MRI scan, non-obstetric ultrasound or gastroscopy at this time.

Of them, 962 (10 per cent) had been waiting for at least six weeks.

Other figures show cancer patients at WWL are not being seen quickly enough.

The NHS states 85 per cent of cancer patients with an urgent referral should start treatment within 62 days.

But NHS England data shows just 73 per cent of cancer patients urgently referred to WWL in February began treatment within two months of their referral.

Oncologist Professor Pat Price, chair of Radiotherapy UK, said: "Today's cancer waiting times serve as yet another reminder of the need for a national cancer plan that supports patients who deserve prompt and cutting-edge treatment."

She warned "delays to cancer treatment have become commonplace", adding "we simply cannot afford to let cancer patients slip away unnoticed".

"I urge the Government to ensure that the forthcoming national cancer plan delivers the action needed to prevent patients from suffering the devastating – and avoidable – consequences of delayed or denied access to lifesaving treatment," she added.

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said these figures are "more evidence of signs of genuine progress across a range of services", adding the NHS and the Government are committed "to continue on this trajectory for the benefit of patients".

He added: "It is fantastic to see that a record proportion of people have received vital results from cancer checks within the four-week standard, despite more people continuing to come forward, helping to give people clarity with that all-important diagnosis so they can plan next steps in terms of treatment or the relief of the all clear."

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: "Through this Government’s Plan for Change, we are starting to see a real difference.

"Fixing our NHS is a long road and this is just the start – but we’re doing the work and delivering for patients."