Women’s health crisis as 750,000 on waiting list
MORE than 750,000 women are now languishing on NHS waiting lists for gynaecology services – with some enduring ‘years of suffering’ due to delays, a study reveals.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is calling for ‘urgent action’ to tackle the backlog, which has doubled since Covid.
Its analysis shows gynaecology waiting lists in England have grown faster than any other speciality since 2000. The RCOG claims women’s health has ‘long been deprioritised and underfunded’ and warns the delays mean many patients deteriorate so much they have to be admitted to hospital in an emergency.
The impact of conditions such as prolapse can be so devastating that many women are forced to give up work while they wait, it added.
The waiting list for gynaecological care in England alone now stands at almost 600,000.
Around half had been waiting longer than the 18-week target as of April, with one in 20 waiting more than a year. There were almost 143,000 emergency admissions in gynaecology in March 2021, rising to nearly 170,000 in March 2023.
RCOG data shows that across the UK there are 751,531 waiting for gynaecology services. It also reveals those in deprived areas face the longest waits.
President Dr Ranee Thakar said if Labour wants to deliver their election pledges on women’s health, gynaecology waits ‘must be top of their list’.
The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare has written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting urging him to prioritise sexual and reproductive health. The letter, signed by 800 clinicians, highlights ‘shocking health inequalities’ faced by women and girls.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said it is ‘committed to prioritising women’s health’.