Hip and knee replacements on NHS four times longer than in Italy

Waiting times for hip and knee replacements are four times longer in England than Italy post-lockdown, analysis has revealed.

Patients in England are waiting an average of 128 days for hip replacements and 141 days for a new knee on the NHS, which are both up by around 50 per cent since before the pandemic.

It leaves England lagging behind other European countries, with waits that are four times longer than Italy, where hip replacements are completed in 33 days and knees within 30 days, according to analysis by the Nuffield Trust.

Sarah Reed, senior fellow at Nuffield Trust and author of the report, said countries around the world were “dealing with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, with many still struggling to bring down waiting times”.

“However, it’s striking that in England our pace of recovery has been much slower for major surgeries like hip and knee replacements, but for some minor procedures we appear to have improved more quickly than nearly everywhere else,” she said.

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Source: The Telegraph, 11 July 2024