The Rising Concerns of Healthcare Waiting Lists in the United Kingdom
“I am sorry, Ma’am; we cannot treat you now,” the hospital receptionist said, giving me a sympathetic look. “Would you like me to call a taxi for you?”
I clutched my bleeding hand tighter, wincing at the pain. Just an hour ago I stood in the doorway of my flat on the University of Stirling campus, struggling to free my hand from the metal door hinges. I quickly wrapped my hand in a dishcloth and called a taxi to take me to the closest open hospital, nearly half an hour away. When I arrived, a kind nurse examined my injury, stating my ring finger was likely broken. Unfortunately, the waiting list at the Emergency Room was too full to include me.
“No, thank you,” I answered. I left the hospital on foot in the direction of the closest pharmacy. I picked up paracetamol (British version of Tylenol), athletic tape, and a Reese’s peanut butter cup. I thought that perhaps this mangled hand could be my first “pre-med project” as an undergraduate student. I made a temporary bandage for my hand before heading home; it was getting late, and I had a lecture the next morning.
One of the first things I learned about being an American exchange student was that long waiting lists for medical attention in the United Kingdom’s healthcare system were not uncommon. In fact, the Health Foundation predicts that by summer of 2024, the National Health Service waiting list for elective care will breach over 8 million individuals. Director of Data Analytics at the Health Foundation, Charles Tallack, shares how the waiting list is likely to grow, leaving numbers of “people anxious for a diagnosis, patients in avoidable pain and lives put on hold.” The UK has made efforts towards reducing the waiting list, but the pandemic only exacerbated issues, increasing difficulties for the NHS to increase their patient numbers. The NHS experiences a regular under shortage of workers, underinvestment from the British government, and legislative negligence regarding social policy.
The Health Foundation further explains how patients seeking elective care typically wait 14.5 weeks, but only 58% of patients receive help within 18 weeks. For an idea of comparison, STAT shares that the average American receives elective care within roughly 3 weeks. However, the average American also experiences more healthcare costs than the typical Brit, making the matter of NHS waiting lists a discussion of pros and cons in comparison to the American healthcare system. Yet, Brunsdon Financial explains how the long waiting times and limited scope of treatment options turns British citizens towards expensive private healthcare services— many services the lower income populations cannot afford. Thus, the problem of NHS waiting lists cannot be easily solved without major trade offs—should patients wait absurdly long periods of time for treatment or pay for expensive out of pocket care?