The number of patients waiting for elective care rises by 452,000 in almost a decade, says watchdog.
Urgent funding is required to clear waiting list backlogs and drive Northern Ireland's long-term healthcare transformation, a watchdog has said.
The Audit Office also said: "Available information suggests waiting list performance levels are significantly worse in Northern Ireland compared with the other UK regions."Elective care refers to medical tests or treatment that can be planned well in advance, in contrast to unscheduled care such as emergency surgery.
"Lengthy waits place patients at risk of developing debilitating and complex conditions, potentially requiring more expensive treatment," Ms Carville added. In December 2022, 500,678 people were on waiting lists - a figure equivalent to 26% of the Northern Ireland population, although some patients may be on more than one list.The reasons for the poor performance include rising demand from an ageing population, at a time when public funding has not risen to match that demand.
High numbers of staff testing positive and new infection control measures also affected the number of elective operations and procedures that could be carried out.But the report also noted that elective delays were a longstanding problem that preceded Covid.
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