85,000 patients estimated to be on NHS waiting lists for treatment at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals

An estimated 85,000 people are waiting for NHS treatment in Sheffield, according to the newest figures published by the NHS.

Although there are 106,362 referrals recorded, the number of patients on waiting lists is estimated by the NHS to be 20 per cent less, due to some people waiting for multiple episodes of care at one time.

90,748 of the total referrals are for specialist treatments at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, comprising the Northern General Hospital, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Jessop Wing, Weston Park Hospital, and Charles Clifford Dental Hospital.

The other 15,597 are for Sheffield Children’s Hospital.

Michael Harper, Chief Operating Officer at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Our teams are working exceptionally hard and making good progress tackling the backlog of postponed care, but we do still have a significant number of people waiting and are putting on additional clinics, operating sessions and employing additional staff to try and see people as quickly as possible. 

"We are one of the largest Trusts in the NHS, delivering over two million episodes of care each year. We also take patients from across South Yorkshire and elsewhere in the UK for many specialist services which means our waiting list is bigger than some other smaller hospitals. 

"Despite this we are treating almost 7 out of ten patients within 18 weeks of referral by their GP and the average wait time is eleven weeks.

"However, for those people waiting much longer than this we understand how distressing it can be and continue to make reducing wait times a top priority despite the challenges of continued industrial action."

These referrals will be for patients in and around Sheffield, across South Yorkshire, and sometimes from elsewhere in the UK for specialist services.

At Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, neurology, dealing with diagnosis and treatment of issues with the nervous system, is one of these specialist services and therefore has the highest demand, with 9,836 episodes of care on the waiting list.

The figures, released by NHS England last week, are up to date for July 2023.