An estimated 7.46 million treatments were waiting to be carried out at the end of December in England, relating to 6.24 million patients – down from 7.48 million treatments and 6.28 million patients at the end of November.
Meanwhile, there were 2,059 patients waiting more than 18 months to start routine treatment at the end of December, up very slightly from 2,051 in November, while the number of patients waiting more than 65 weeks dropped to 15,568 from 16,904.
The college’s clinical vice president Dr John Dean said: “Every day, thousands of patients remain stuck in hospital beds — not because they need medical care, but because there is simply nowhere for them to go, such as a place in a residential care home or a support package for care in their current home.
“This post-pandemic period is potentially the hardest the NHS has ever managed and that has certainly been true this winter with soaring levels of viruses, high bed occupancy and difficulties discharging patients – with last week seeing 14,000 beds taken up each day by patients who were medically fit for discharge,” he added.
Meanwhile, the waiting list for routine hospital treatment in England fell for the fourth consecutive month, with the number of people waiting more than a year for treatment also at its lowest since November 2020.
