MPs told of concerns over NHS ophthalmology waiting list data

MPs told of concerns over NHS ophthalmology waiting list data

Concerns that NHS waiting list figures do not reflect the full extent of unfulfilled care in ophthalmology have been raised with MPs.

Independent NHS ophthalmology provider Newmedica has told the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of issues around NHS data capture for patients requiring regular follow-up for conditions such as glaucoma and wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

The warning comes as the committee publishes

In evidence submitted to the inquiry, Newmedica said: ‘We remain concerned that official waiting list figures do not capture the full extent of unfulfilled care in ophthalmology, and it is possible that the same is true of any specialty involved in chronic disease management.

‘This is because for several conditions, including glaucoma and wet AMD, regular follow-up is required which is not reflected in referral to treatment times (RTTs), which are aimed for the most part at measuring wait times for one-off instances of care.’

It continues: ‘Newmedica has attempted to gather data from trusts which can give a better indication of wait times for Wet AMD but has found record keeping to be inconsistent, or in the case of some trusts, non-existent.

‘We fail to understand how proper planning and budget allocation can be performed without accurate data regarding specific pathway demand, current capacity, or localised system failings. Newmedica would like to see greater transparency and accountability around the recording of follow-on care data, which would help improve services for patients requiring additional or regular procedures after their first treatments.’

In the report, the committee makes several recommendations that include the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England needing to ‘set out the actions they have taken to monitor and address risks associated with long waits and on disparities in waits between groups of patients’.

PAC deputy chair Clive Betts MP said in a committee news article about the report: ‘Every unnecessary day that a patient spends on an NHS waiting list is both one of increased anxiety for that person’s unresolved case, and if they are undiagnosed, a steady increasing of risk to their life.’

Responding to Mr Betts comments, Newmedica’s medical director Nigel Kirkpatrick says: ‘Patients are at the heart of everything that Newmedica does. We provide outstanding care and outcomes for patients across a broad range of ophthalmology services.

‘We also have the capacity, expertise and care to support work to reduce NHS waiting lists with ophthalmology being the busiest sector within the NHS.’

Mr Kirkpatrick adds: ‘We’ve been an NHS partner for many years, delivering timely access to outstanding care and treatment from a network of state-of-the-art facilities across England. We look forward to continuing to work with our NHS colleagues and government partners to deliver for patients.’