NHS waiting lists have risen to another record high as top doctors warn winter will be “appalling” for hospitals if strikes drag on.
Figures show 7.75million people were waiting for treatment at the end of August compared to 7.68m in July.
AlamyHospitals are struggling to cut waiting lists because of high demand, job vacancies and strikes, experts say[/caption]
Emergency delays also increased as September was the busiest month of the year so far for A&Es and ambulances.
More than 2.1million people went to casualty and 999 crews received 827,690 calls, with 77,553 top priority ambulance callouts.
Professor Peter Friend, of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: “Increased demand, staff vacancies and industrial action all continue to hold back recovery efforts.”
Dr Tim Cooksley, of the Society for Acute Medicine, added: “In light of current immense strain, industrial action must be resolved before the pressures of winter hit.
“If this does not happen, the severity of patient outcomes and experiences over the winter months will be appalling.”
Medics have been on strike for the equivalent of an entire working month already this year, with more than a million appointments cancelled.
Junior doctors and consultants in the British Medical Association walked out together last week in an unprecedented three-day strike.
Both have threatened to keep protesting deep into 2024 if they don’t get a better pay deal from ministers, who are refusing to budge.
The waiting list for treatment in England has risen by nearly 750,000 since the strikes began last December.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, medical director for NHS England, said: “Industrial action is continuing to pile pressure on services and impact capacity, adding a lot of pressure to hospitals before winter.
“Despite this, it is clear from today’s figures that NHS staff are working incredibly hard to deliver for patients with 10 per cent more patients coming off the waiting list in August than the same month before the pandemic.”
Long waits are the NHS’ priority but began to increase again in August, with 396,643 having been on the list for more than a year.
Another 8,998 were waiting longer than 18 months, up from 7,289 in July.
Thea Stein, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust think-tank, said: “Bringing down record waiting times is a central pledge of both main political parties but achieving this task still looks a long way off.”
Meanwhile the NHS said it has hit its target of opening 10,000 “virtual ward” beds ahead of winter to keep people out of hospitals.
Prof Powis said the “world-leading” programme has treated more than 240,000 people at home already.