Last year 18,600 children’s operations were cancelled due to lack of beds and staff shortages
- The number of operations being cancelled has risen by 58 per cent in six years
- Figures show 117,936 children’s operations have been cancelled since 2011/12
- 2017/18 saw 18,647 cancellations, which Labour party blamed on lack of funding
A record 18,600 children’s operations were cancelled last year, figures reveal.
The number has risen by 58 per cent in six years, owing to issues such as a lack of beds and staff shortages.
Figures obtained by Labour show that a total of 117,936 children’s operations have been cancelled since 2011/12.
Figures have revealed that a record 18,600 children’s operations were cancelled last year and the number has risen by 58 per cent in six years
In that year, 11,821 operations were cancelled.
That number rose to 18,647 in 2017/18, which Labour blamed on a lack of NHS funding.
Jonathan Ashworth MP, the party’s health spokesman, said: ‘Behind each of these cancellations is a sick child and their loved ones facing unnecessary distress.’
It comes as the Royal College of Emergency Medicine warned that 52 per cent of A&Es are not meeting the four-hour target to deal with patients more than 85 per cent of the time.
This suggests the units are crowded and pose a greater risk to patients, the RCEM said.
Figures obtained by Labour show that a total of 117,936 children’s operations have been cancelled since 2011/12