Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people are on a waiting list for treatment for Tinnitus.

The Department does not hold information in this format. Tinnitus is a condition that can result in many different treatments, including medication, which are not all captured in the Waiting List Minimum Dataset.

As of November 2024, the waiting list for ear, nose and throat (ENT) stood at 633,270. This marked a decrease of 4,380 compared to October 2024. As of November 2024, 49.2% of pathways were within 18 weeks. Not all of the patients on the waiting list will have a “decision to treat”.

Tackling waiting lists, including in ENT, is a key part of our Health Mission, and we will deliver an additional two million operations, scans, and appointments during our first year in Government, which is equivalent to 40,000 per week, as a first step in our commitment to ensure that patients can expect to be treated within 18 weeks.

The Elective Reform Plan, launched as part of the Government’s Plan for Change, sets out how we will get back to the NHS Constitutional Standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment by the end of this Parliament, whilst also ensuring that patients have the best possible experience of care. The Elective Reform Plan also commits to reforming clinical pathways to improve efficiency in five priority specialties, one of which is ENT.