Covid-19: Cancelled Medical Operations

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley Excerpts

Wednesday 10th June 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Kennedy of Cradley]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of cancelled medical operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Lord Bethell) (Con) [V]]

My Lords, NHS trusts were rightly asked to postpone elective activity to free up capacity to support the response to Covid-19. The latest data shows that there was a 30% reduction in the number of completed admitted patient pathways in March 2020 compared to the same month last year. Data for April is due to be published by NHS England tomorrow. The NHS is safely restoring urgent non-Covid services, catching up on the backlog, and ensuring that surge capacity can be stood up again should it be needed.

[Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Lab) [V]]

My Lords, thousands of patients with non-Covid conditions are not getting the treatment they need, and thousands more with life-threatening diseases such as cancer are going undiagnosed every day. Yet we see reports that private facilities, which the Government are paying for, are either empty or hosting only a trickle of NHS patients. Can the noble Lord say how many private beds paid for by the Government are being used by the NHS, and what is the Government’s plan to stop waiting lists hitting 10 million by Christmas?

[Lord Bethell [V]]

My Lords, I do not have the precise figures which the noble Baroness asked for. However, I reassure the Chamber that the NHS is working hard to ensure that those who need urgent surgery, such as cancer patients, have it, and we have committed a substantial amount to the Help Us, Help You media campaign, which is having an impact in restoring confidence in returning to hospitals.