NHS Wales waiting times: Thousands still waiting two years

Around 30,000 people in Wales are waiting more than two years after being referred for hospital treatment as another key target is missed.

By March, no patient in most specialties was expected to wait that long as the Welsh NHS attempts to tackle its post-Covid backlog.

But official figures showed 31,406 patient pathways had missed the target.

About 576,000 patients are on waiting lists, a rise of 2,000 after a fall in the previous five months.

Waiting times for hospital treatment this month have been adjusted to make them more comparable with England.

But they still make grim reading for the longest waits.

Health Minister Eluned Morgan emphasised that more needs to be done to eliminate the longest waits.

"The day to day work of the NHS is carried out by highly paid executives in the health boards, it is their job to deliver," she told BBC Wales.

"I will take my share of responsibility, and I do every single day of the week in the Senedd. But I think other people need to understand that they have a responsibility also. And what is clear is that some health boards are performing a lot better than others."

The Welsh NHS Confederation, which represents health boards, said reductions were continuing in the longest waits.

"Although the situation is far from ideal, this is the lowest in almost two years and shows just how far the NHS has come and the phenomenal efforts of staff," it said.

Carol and Doug Williams from Glyncoch near Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, said they have been waiting three years for Carol's treatment after she fell and fractured her knee.

The couple claim Carol was deemed a "clinical medical emergency" and she would need an operation to repair the damage but the appointment for surgery never came.

In the following months, unsteady on her feet, Carol fell again. This time fracturing a vertebra and her pelvis. This too would need surgery.

But the 79-year-old is still waiting and relies on a frame and wheelchair to get around and is left largely house-bound.

She said: "I feel as if, 'is there going to be an end to it":[]}