Waiting Times Report

Waiting Times for planned (elective) care

Our waiting times statistics include information on waiting times for planned (elective) care. They exclude information about emergency (unscheduled) care. The information provides an overview of patients who are currently on an NHS Orkney waiting list as at 31 October 2024. The statistics included relate to the wait you may experience to:

• Attend a particular outpatient clinic for the first time (known as a new outpatient attendance)
• Receive treatment under the national Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG) standard as an inpatient or day case

The waiting times figures are displayed in weeks and show patients who have either completed their wait and have been seen at a new outpatient appointment or have been admitted for treatment between 1 October 2024 and 31 October 2024.

For patients currently on an NHS Orkney waiting list, some will have waited less than the median waiting time* whilst others will have waited longer. We use the 90th percentile to show that out of every 10 patients, 9 are currently waiting less than the number of weeks indicated.

The wait experienced by our patients may vary from the median for a number of reasons, and this includes:

• The clinical need of the patient
• The urgency of the care required
• The availability of services
• The number of patients waiting to be treated

To note: Decisions about waiting times will always be made by a clinician and influenced by a clinical decision or the urgency of the care required. Statistics are likely to fluctuate as NHS Orkney addresses the backlog of patients waiting for planned care, consistent with Health Boards across NHS Scotland.

To ensure patient confidentiality, waiting times statistics are not included if there were less than 5 patients waiting or seen for treatment in the period (indicated as '<5' on each table).

Patients who need to go off island for care and treatment

NHS Orkney waiting times figures are only for patients waiting for an appointment or treatment here in Orkney. If patients need to go off island for treatment/appointment, please click on the NHS Inform link below, the Health Board where you have been referred, to view their waiting times statistics.

The next set of statistics will be published on the third week of every month and will provide an update on waiting times for the previous month.

For more information please visit NHS Inform.

* The median wait time is used to calculate the typical length of time patients are currently waiting or have waited to be seen