NHS England continues to miss turnaround time targets

In the first three months of 2024, nearly 200,000 patients waited over a month for the results of their scan, compared to 160,000 in the comparative quarter in 2023.

Specifically looking at complex scans[1] often used to diagnose cancer, over 84,000 patients waited more than a month for a diagnosis or for cancer to be ruled out, compared to 74,000 for the same quarter last year.

This is because we do not have enough radiologists to report the level of scans that are being taken. Our 2023 census found that we have a 30% shortfall of radiologists, equivalent to nearly 2,000 doctors. Any delay in receiving a diagnosis can mean that patients begin their treatment late, potentially worsening outcomes.

There are serious disparities across the country in the number of patients waiting over a month for the results of the scan. More than double the proportion of patients in London and the South East waited over a month for the results of their scan compared to in the Midlands. This risks widening existing health inequalities, and means patients face a postcode lottery of care.

In 2023, 97% of clinical directors were concerned that workforce shortages were causing backlogs and delays in their local area.

In response to NHS England's Diagnostic Imaging Data release, President of The Royal College of Radiologists, Dr Katharine Halliday, said:

"Today's turnaround times data confirms what we already know as frontline doctors: with an aging population increasingly needing our services, there simply aren't enough radiologists to handle the growing number of scans requiring reports.

We appreciate the intention behind the Government's new policy to double the number of CT and MRI scanners, which aims to tackle our notoriously long waiting lists. However, we must recognise that without a corresponding increase in the number of radiologists to interpret these additional scans, more patients will face the anxiety of longer waits for results, undermining the policy's effectiveness.

To address this issue, we must ensure more specialty training positions for radiologists. We urge the Government to fully fund the first two years of radiology training posts to support trusts and grow the capacity to report the increasing number of scans. Expanding training places and increasing the capacity of trusts to train new radiologists will be far more effective in reducing waiting lists than simply providing new equipment. Ultimately, a healthy NHS depends on a healthy, well-supported workforce."

The latest quarterly data release went live on Thursday 18 July 2024. The full NHS England data set can be accessed here. The data corresponds to Q4 2023 or January - March 2024.

References

[1] CT, MRI, PET, S-PET and Nuclear Medicine Scans.