Don’t expect much from Wes Streeting’s waiting list purge

Well, that’s one way to reduce NHS waiting lists: to kick off a load of patients whom you have decided don’t need to be on them. New NHS chief executive John Mackey has ordered that everyone on a waiting list must be ‘validated’ – with the aim of removing 300,000 of the 7.43 million names on them. Examples given are people who have already been seen privately and have no further need for NHS treatment, people who have instead sought help in A&E, people who no longer have symptoms or those who could be seen ‘in the community’ instead (i.e. at GP surgeries or clinics).

I don’t doubt that there are people on NHS waiting lists who don’t need to be there. I have had experience myself of what have been termed ‘pointless appointments’. A few years ago I had a wart removed.