Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average time taken to diagnose ankylosing spondylitis was in each of the last five years.

We do not hold data in the format requested. To support health and care professionals in the early diagnosis of musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, such as ankylosing spondylitis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published expert guidance on the diagnosis and management of spondyloarthritis in over 16 year olds, which is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng65

The NICE guidance aims to raise awareness of the features of spondyloarthritis and provide clear advice on what action to take when people with signs and symptoms first present in healthcare settings.

As announced in the Get Britain Working white paper, we are delivering the joint Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, and NHS England Getting It Right First-Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. With a £3.5 million funding boost, GIRFT teams will deploy their proven Further Faster model to work with integrated care board leaders to further reduce MSK community waiting times, including for those with ankylosing spondylitis, and improve data, metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services.