The NHS has a number of targets to ensure patients are seen and treated in a timely manner.
Emergency treatment waiting times
All acute NHS Trusts have a formal target to see 95 per cent of patients in A&E within four hours (set in 2010). That means four hours from arrival to admission, transfer and discharge. In December 2022 NHS England set an interim target of 76%.
In February 2024 we had 14,485 attendances at our emergency departments with 56% of patients treated within 4 hours.
Our staff are working hard to see and treat people as quickly as possible but we are seeing high numbers of people attending with many of those requiring admission to hospital.
Waiting for planned treatment
If you are referred to one of our consultants for non-urgent treatment you should expect to start receiving treatment within 18 weeks from when your appointment is booked. Patients with urgent conditions such as suspected cancer and heart disease will be seen by a specialist more quickly.
The 18 weeks does not apply if A) you choose to wait longer, B) if delaying treatment is in your best interest (clinically), C) if it is clinically appropriate to monitor your condition without intervention at that stage, D) if you fail to attend appointments or E) your treatment is no longer necessary.
When you see a clinician at your chosen hospital or clinic you may:
- undergo tests, scans or other procedures to help ensure that your treatment is tailored appropriately to your condition
- have medication or therapy to manage your symptoms until you start treatment
- be referred to another consultant or department.
Your waiting time ends if no treatment is necessary or when your treatment begins. This could include:being admitted to hospital for an operation or treatment
- starting treatment, such as taking medication, that doesn’t require you to stay in hospital
- beginning your fitting of a medical device, such as leg braces
- agreeing to your condition being monitored for a time to see whether you need further treatment
- receiving advice from hospital staff to manage your condition.
Our performance against the Referral to Treatment (RTT) target for February 2024, was 58%.
Cancer treatment
Cancer waiting time standards were updated nationally in October 2003. There are now three key indicators we are measured against:
- Faster Diagnosis Standard: a diagnosis or ruling out of cancer within 28 days of referral (set at 75%)
- 31-day treatment standard: commence treatment within 31 days of a decision to treat (set at 96%)
- 62-day treatment standard: commence treatment within 62 days of being referred (set at 85%)
Our performance against these targets in February 2024 was as follows:
- 28 day faster diagnosis standard – 79%
- 31 days from decision to treat to first treatment – 97%
- 62 days from urgent referral to start of treatment -53%
Waiting time in weeks for a new outpatient appointment (as of 29 February 2024)
These are the current waiting times (in weeks) for new outpatient appointments. We aim to provide accurate waiting times but please note that these are a forecast and could change.
Specialty | Grimsby | Scunthorpe | Goole |
---|---|---|---|
Breast surgery | 2 | n/a | n/a |
Cardiac Paediatrics | 37 | 24 | n/a |
Cardiology | 22 | 22 | 22 |
Colorectal | 2 | 4 | n/a |
Community Paediatrics | 23 | 44 | n/a |
Diabetic medicine | 4 | 33 | n/a |
Endocrinology | 36 | 36 | n/a |
Endocrinology – Paeds | 16 | 16 | n/a |
Ear, Nose and Throat | 33 | 25 | n/a |
Gastroenterology | 32 | 30 | n/a |
General medicine | 3 | 3 | n/a |
General surgery | 6 | 10 | n/a |
Geriatric medicine | 12 | 12 | n/a |
Gynaecology | 26 | 30 | 24 |
Medical Oncology | 8 | 8 | n/a |
Ophthalmology | 14 | 30 | 11 |
Oral surgery | 10 | 10 | n/a |
Orthopaedics | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Orthoptics | 3 | 6 | 1 |
Paediatric Epilepsy | 12 | 2 | n/a |
Paediatrics | 22 | 42 | n/a |
Paediatrics ADHD | n/a | 61 | n/a |
Respiratory medicine | 28 | 32 | 20 |
Rheumatology | 16 | 19 | n/a |
Upper gastrointestinal surgery | 16 | 8 | n/a |
Urology | 6 | 5 | 4 |
Waiting time, in weeks, for a diagnostic test (as of 29 February 2024)
Diagnostic test | Grimsby | Scunthorpe | Goole |
---|---|---|---|
Audiology assessment – adults Audiology assessment – paeds | 22 84 | 20 75 | 10 n/a |
Cardiology – Echocardiogram | 6 | 5 | n/a |
Cardiology – Exercise Test | 6 | 6 | n/a |
Cardiology – BP Monitoring | 2 | 3 | n/a |
Cardiology – Event Recording | 4 | 4 | n/a |
Fluroscopy Other – 2 week wait | 1 | 1 | n/a |
Fluroscopy Other – urgent | 2 | 4 | n/a |
Fluroscopy Other – routine | 6 | 7 | n/a |
Fluroscopy – Barium – 2 week wait | 1 | 1 | n/a |
Fluroscopy – Barium – urgent | 1 | 1 | n/a |
Fluroscopy – Barium – routine | 1 | 1 | n/a |
Radiology – Other – 2 week wait | 1 | 1 | n/a |
Radiology – Other – urgent | 2 | 1 | n/a |
Radiology – Other – routine | 4 | 4 | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Bone – 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Bone – – urgent | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Bone – – routine | 6 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Myoview – urgent | 3 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Myoview – routine | 4 | n/a | n/a |
CT scan – 2 week wait | 2 | 2 | 0 |
CT scan – urgent | 5 | 6 | 0 |
CT scan – routine | 6 | 7 | 0 |
CT Colon – 2 week wait | 1 | 2 | n/a |
CT Colon – urgent | 4 | 5 | n/a |
CT Colon – routine | 6 | 6 | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Other – 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Other – urgent | 2 | n/a | n/a |
Nuclear Medicine – Other – routine | 2 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Bone Densitometry (routine) | 3 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – EEG – urgent | 2 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – EEG – routine | 7 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Lung Function – 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Lung Function – urgent | 3 | 1 | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Lung Function – routine | 7 | 14 | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Nerve Conduction – 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Nerve Conduction – urgent | 2 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Nerve Conduction – routine | 3 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Urodynamics- 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Urodynamics – urgent | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – Urodynamics – routine | 5 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – other – 2 week wait | 1 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – other – urgent | 4 | n/a | n/a |
Physical Measurements – other – routine | 9 | n/a | n/a |
MRI – 2 week wait | 1 | 1 | n/a |
MRI – urgent | 12 | 14 | n/a |
MRI – routine | 18 | 17 | n/a |
Non-obstetric ultrasound – 2 week wait | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Non-obstetric ultrasound – urgent | 13 | 5 | 7 |
Non-obstetric ultrasound – routine | 13 | 7 | 9 |
Endoscopy – Colonoscopy | 3 | 3 | n/a |
Endoscopy – Flexible Sigmoidoscopy | 1 | 3 | n/a |
Endoscopy – Cystoscopy | 6 | 6 | 2 |
Endoscopy – Gastroscopy | 3 | 3 | n/a |
Colposcopy (routine) | 46 | 29 | 24 |
Hysteroscopy (routine) | 46 | 39 | n/a |