Publication of the Quarterly Northern Ireland Waiting List Statistics

Date published: 27 August 2015

The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety today published the quarterly Northern Ireland Waiting List Statistics, relating to the position at the 30th June 2015.

Key facts and figures for NI Waiting Times at end of June 2015

Waiting times for a first outpatient appointment

The 2015/16 Ministerial target relating to outpatient waiting times states that from April 2015, at least 60% of patients should wait no longer than nine weeks for a first outpatient appointment, and no patient waiting longer than 18 weeks.

Total number waiting

The total number of people waiting for a first outpatient appointment at the end of June 2015 was 212,444, representing an increase of 10.8% (20,667) compared to March 2015 (191,777) and a 45.9% (66,877) increase compared to June 2014 (145,567).

Proportion waiting over nine weeks

Of those patients waiting for a first outpatient appointment at the end of June 2015, 60.8% (129,224) were waiting more than nine weeks; this is compared with 56.3% waiting more than nine weeks at the end of March 2015 and 38.5% at the end of June 2014.

Patients waiting longer than 18 weeks

The number of people waiting more than 18 weeks for a first outpatient appointment at the end of June 2015 was 85,997, 40.5% of the total number waiting. This is compared with 69,730 (36.4%) waiting more than 18 weeks at the end of March 2015, and 20,852 (14.3%) waiting more than 18 weeks at the end of June 2014.

Completed Outpatient Waits for a First Appointment

When attendances at HSC Trusts and Health Service commissioned Independent Sector activity are combined, it is estimated that approximately 123,733 outpatients attended a first outpatient appointment in Northern Ireland during the quarter April to June 2015.

Waiting times for first appointment at an Integrated Clinical Assessment and Treatment Service (ICATS)

Total number waiting

There were 10,909 patients waiting for a first ICATS Tier 2 appointment at the end of June 2015. This was 597 (5.2%) less than at the end of March 2015 and 470 (4.5%) more than at the end of June 2014.

Proportion waiting over nine weeks

A total of 30.9% (3,368) patients were waiting more than nine weeks for a first ICATS Tier 2 appointment, compared to 33.1% (3,813) at the end of March 2015, and 20.7% (2,160) at the end of June 2014.

Patients waiting longer than 18 weeks

There were 9.7% (1,061) patients waiting longer than 18 weeks for a first ICATS Tier 2 appointment, compared with 13.8% (1,593) at the end of March 2015, and 6.1% (634) waiting at the end of June 2014.

Waiting times for a diagnostic service

The 2015/16 Ministerial target for diagnostic waiting times states that, from April 2015, no patient should wait longer than nine weeks for a diagnostic test.

Total number waiting

At the end of June 2015, there were 89,684 patients waiting for a diagnostic service at HSC Trusts in Northern Ireland. This represents an increase of 11.2% (9,041) compared with the end of March 2015 and an increase of 23.0% (16,745) compared to the end of June 2014.

Patients Waiting Longer Than the 2015/16 Diagnostic Waiting Times Target

There were 30,061 (33.5%) patients waiting longer than 9 weeks at the end of June 2015, an increase of 30.6% compared to the previous quarter but more than twice the number waiting at the end of June 2014 (14,357).

Diagnostic Reporting Turnaround Times

The Ministerial target for diagnostic reporting times states that, from April 2015, all urgent diagnostic tests should be reported on within two days of the test being undertaken.

Total number waiting

There were 134,335 completed diagnostic reports verified and dispatched to the referring clinician in Northern Ireland during the quarter ending June 2015, a decrease of 1.9% (2,586) on the 136,921 reported in the previous quarter.

Performance against 2014/15 Diagnostic Reporting Time Target

During the quarter ending June 2015, 89.1% of urgent diagnostic tests in Northern Ireland were reported, verified and dispatched within two days. The South Eastern HSC Trust reported the highest proportion of urgent tests within two days (97.3%), with the other Trusts reporting between 78.7% and 94.6% of urgent tests within 2 days.

Diagnostic Reporting Time Indicators of Performance

The 2015/16 Ministerial indicators of performance for diagnostic reporting times refer to (i) the percentage of routine diagnostic tests reported on within 2 weeks of the test being undertaken, and (ii) the percentage of routine diagnostic tests reported on within 4 weeks of the test being undertaken.
A total of 99.0% of routine diagnostic tests were reported, verified and dispatched within four weeks (with 94.9% of routine diagnostic tests reported, verified and dispatched within two weeks). Each Trust managed to report at least 96.9% of all routine tests within four weeks.

Waiting times for inpatient admission

The Ministerial target, for inpatient waiting times, states that from April 2014, at least 65% of patients should wait no longer than 13 weeks for inpatient or day case treatment, and no patient should wait longer than 26 weeks.

Total number waiting

The total number of patients waiting for inpatient treatment at the end of June 2015 was 60,127, 3.8% (2,193) more than at the end of March 2015 (57,934), and 19.5% (9,797) more than at the end of June 2014 (50,330).

Patients waiting over 13 weeks

Of those waiting for inpatient treatment at the end of June 2015, 48.3% (29,028) were waiting more than 13 weeks. This is compared with 48.0% (27,780) waiting more than 13 weeks at the end of March 2015, and 35.0% (17,624) waiting more than 13 weeks at the end of June 2014.

Patients waiting over 26 weeks

There were 14,777 patients waiting longer than 26 weeks for inpatient admission at the end of June 2015. This is an increase of 8.5% (1,155) compared with the previous quarter and more than twice the number waiting at the end of June 2014 (5,485).

Completed Inpatient Waits

During the quarter ending June 2015, it is estimated that the number of HSC patients admitted for inpatient treatment, in both HSC hospitals and the Independent Sector was approximately 46,755, an increase of 5.5% (2,447) on the previous quarter, and a decrease of 8.5% (4,367) on the quarter ending June 2014.

Notes to editors: 

1. Northern Ireland waiting time statistics: outpatient, diagnostic and inpatient waiting times June 2015

2. About the data

  • The sources for the data contained in this release are the Departmental Information Returns CH3, QOAR, SDR1, DRTT, IS1, the DHSSPS Inpatient and ICATS Waiting Times Datasets and the Hospital Inpatient System Dataset. These returns collect information from HSC Trusts and the Health and Social Care Board on a quarterly basis.
  • Figures will also include privately funded patients waiting for treatment in Health Service hospitals and those patients who are resident outside Northern Ireland.
  • Data incorporate all returns and amendments received from HSC Trusts up to 14th August 2015.

3. Outpatient definitions

  • An outpatient appointment is an appointment to enable a patient to see a consultant, a member of their team or a locum for such a member, in respect of one referral.
  • The waiting list figures include all outpatients who have not had their first appointments by the end of the quarter including those who have cancelled or missed a previous appointment.
  • The outpatient waiting list figures presented do not include maternity specialties 501 (Obstetrics), 510 (Obstetrics (Ante Natal)) and 520 (Obstetrics (Post Natal)).

4. Integrated Clinical Assessment and Treatment Services (ICATS) definitions

  • From 1st April 2010, a number of Integrated Clinical Assessment and Treatment Services (ICATS) were officially introduced within the Health Service in Northern Ireland. ICATS is the term used for a range of outpatient type services for patients, which are provided by integrated multi-disciplinary teams of health service professionals, including GPs with a special interest, specialist nurses and allied health professionals. They are provided in a variety of primary, community and secondary care settings and they include assessment, treatment, diagnostic and advisory services.
  • An ICATS Tier 2 first appointment is considered as a non consultant outpatient appointment and hence these waiters are not reported along with consultant led outpatient waiters.

5. Diagnostic Service definitions

  • A diagnostic service provides an examination, test or procedure used to identify a person’s disease or condition and which allows a medical diagnosis to be made.
  • The diagnostic waiting list figures presented include people waiting for a test with a diagnostic element including tests that are part diagnostic and subsequently part therapeutic. They do not include:
    • patients waiting for procedures as part of a screening programme
    • patients undergoing a planned programme of tests
    • purely therapeutic procedures. A therapeutic procedure is defined as a procedure which involves actual treatment of a person’s disease, condition or injury
    • patients currently admitted to a hospital bed and waiting for an emergency procedure

6. Diagnostic Reporting Times definitions

  • The diagnostic reporting turnaround time is the length of time between the diagnostic test being undertaken and the results being verified and dispatched to the referring clinician.
  • Diagnostic reporting times apply to a selected subset of diagnostic services. These services are: Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Computerised Tomography; Non-Obstetric Ultrasound; Barium Studies; DEXA Scan; Radio-Nuclide Imaging; Pure Tone Audiometry; Echocardiography; Perfusion Studies; Peripheral Neurophysiology; Sleep Studies; and Urodynamics Pressures and Flows.

7. Inpatient definitions

  • Ordinary admissions include both (a) patients admitted electively with the expectation that they will remain in hospital for at least one night, and (b) non-elective admissions (e.g. emergency admissions). A patient who is admitted with either of the above intentions, but who leaves hospital for any reason without staying overnight, is still counted as an ordinary admission. The figures in this statistics release only include non-emergency admissions.
  • Day Cases are patients admitted electively during the course of a day with the intention of receiving care who do not require the use of a hospital bed overnight and who return home as scheduled. If this original intention is not fulfilled and the patient stays overnight, such a patient is counted as an ordinary admission.
  • The waiting list inpatient figures presented include people waiting to be admitted as inpatients either as day cases or ordinary admissions. They do not include:
    • patients admitted as emergency cases
    • outpatients
    • patients undergoing a planned programme of treatment e.g. a series of admissions for chemotherapy
    • maternity (specialties 510 and 520)
    • patients currently receiving inpatient treatment in hospitals but who are included on other waiting lists
    • patients who are temporarily suspended from waiting lists

8. This information was collated by Hospital Information Branch, DHSSPS.

9. Media queries to DHSSPS Press Office on 02890 520074, or out of office hours contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 076 9971 5440 and your call will be returned. Follow us on Twitter @healthdpt

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