Almost half (46%) of Mancunians are worried about NHS waiting times, citing this as their biggest healthcare concern, new research shows. Additionally, almost two thirds (60%) of people in Manchester would consider paying for private healthcare treatments in the future to bypass long waiting times, demonstrating Manchester’s desire for alternative healthcare options.
The statistics conducted independently on behalf of BMI Healthcare reveal that the majority of the Manchester population are not aware or are unsure about how to self-pay for their healthcare. The new figures show that almost half (44%) have never heard of the concept and a further 13% do not understand the concept, demonstrating that Mancunians are unaware of the healthcare options available to them.
Mr Anselm Agwunobi, Consultant General and Gastrointestinal Surgeon at the BMI Alexandra Hospital in Manchester says: “When we have something wrong with us, we want to get better as quickly possible and return to doing the things we love. We don’t want to be waiting for treatment for long periods of time and potentially making ourselves worse. But unfortunately, this is exactly what some patients are having to do because of the huge demands and significant strain on the NHS which struggles to cope with some of the demands placed on it.
The survey, which assessed 1,191 respondents, also discovered a disconnect between how long the public believe they would wait on the NHS for treatments, compared to how long they would like to wait. Respondents believe that the average waiting time for a simple medical procedure on the NHS (any treatment that doesn’t involve an overnight stay) is 4.4 months – over a third of the year. The NHS has a target to treat 92% of patients within 18 weeks. However, the public only think it’s acceptable to wait a maximum of 3 months (12 weeks) for a simple medical procedure.
The NHS’ target waiting time – referred to as the ‘referral to treatment time’ – last month reached the worst record since its introduction, at only 91.5%. This figure equates to more than 300,000 patients not being treated for their illness or injury within 18 weeks. Furthermore, waiting lists grew by 63,000 and at the end of April, over 3.6million patients were waiting to start treatment. Of these, 870 patients were waiting more than 52 weeks.
Mr Agwunobi continues, “it’s essential that other options are available to patients and that they are aware of these alternatives.”
According to Laing Buisson, there has been an estimated 34% increase in self-pay treatments since 2012 and with each year that goes by, there are more and more patients turning to this option, either by choice or through necessity and absence of alternatives. Commenting on this growth within consumer spending, Mr Agwunobi adds, “It’s important that patients have options available to them to speed up their treatments, such as through self-paying. I’ve seen more and more patients choosing this route, but it’s not a route that many patients are initially aware of. That’s why it’s key that patients know all of their options outside of the NHS.”
