PATIENTS were waiting an 'unacceptable' average of 16 weeks for routine treatment at Gobowen's Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt (RJAH) Orthopaedic Hospital in February, figures show.

The King's Fund think tank said another national record for the number of people on hospital waiting lists shows the strain on the NHS is reaching 'unacceptable levels'.

NHS England figures show the median waiting time for non-urgent elective operations or treatment at the RJAH Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust was 16 weeks at the end of February – the same as in January.

This was also unchanged from the average wait a year previously.

There were 13,117 patients on the waiting list in February – up from 12,974 in January, and 11,315 in February 2021.

Of those, 1,740 had been waiting for longer than one year.

Nationally, 6.2 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of February.

This is up from 6.1 million in January and the highest number since records began in August 2007.

But the figures also show that while the overall waiting list has continued to grow, the number of people waiting more than a year and two years have both fallen.

Danielle Jefferies, analyst at The King’s Fund, said the latest national figures show pressures are now reaching “unacceptable levels” in all parts of the health and care system.

She added: “A&E departments remain full of patients in need of urgent care, and separate data shows a similar story in general practice and social care.

“In March, 22,500 people waited over 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E – a more than thirty-fold increase compared to a year ago."

At RJAH, 1,290 patients were waiting for one of four standard tests, such as an MRI scan or non-obstetric ultrasound at this time.

Of them, 325 (25 per cent) had been waiting for at least six weeks.

Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that there are 20,000 medically-fit patients who cannot be discharged due to pressures on social care."

“Trusts are also grappling with the ongoing impact of Covid-19," he added.

"That’s meant more patients with Covid-19 in hospital beds, more staff off work with Covid-19, and more delayed discharges than anyone was expecting or had predicted.”

NHS England national medical director Professor Stephen Powis said: “Nobody should be under any illusion about how tough a job NHS staff have on their hands, balancing competing priorities and maintaining high quality patient care."

RJAH has been approached for comment.