NEW modelling by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) shows more than 50,000 people in the West Midlands could be waiting for life-saving heart diagnosis and treatment two years after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The charity’s forecast shows the number of people anxiously waiting for heart care and diagnosis in the region in March 2022 could be more than double the size of the waiting list before the pandemic began.
In February 2020, around 23,400 were on cardiology waiting lists in the West Midlands but the BHF predicts it could be at 54,300 by next March because of the pandemic.
In Birmingham and Solihull the 2020 cardiology waiting list was 5,591, the BHF predicts it could be 16,586 in 2022 – a 197 per cent rise.
In Herefordshire and Worcestershire, the 2,468 patients in 2020 could be more like 5,639 – a 128 per cent increase.
And in Coventry and Warwickshire, the 2020 waiting list figure was 2,482 – that could rise to 5,515 in 2022 (up by 122 per cent).
The forecast is of a worse case but possible scenario where the NHS in England does not get enough investment and is under increased pressure from Covid-19 or a bad winter.
The new Untold Heartbreak report reveals without decisive action now it could take between three and five years for the heart care backlog in England to recover to pre-pandemic levels.
Even before the pandemic began, around 225,000 people in England were on cardiology waiting lists for heart diagnosis or treatment and around 8,400 were waiting for heart surgery.
Long waits for diagnosis and treatment of conditions like coronary heart disease, abnormal heart rhythms and heart failure are emotionally distressing and increase the risk of someone becoming more unwell or dying while they await vital care.
There were 5,800 ‘excess’ deaths from heart and circulatory conditions in the first year of the pandemic in England and significant heart care delays likely contributed to this figure.
Even in a better case scenario, where already-pledged Government funding supports NHS England to address the heart care backlog quicker, the BHF estimates it would still take three years for waiting lists to return to pre-pandemic levels.
The charity wants the Government to produce a clear plan for cardiovascular services and rapid investment to build more capacity in England and relieve pressure on exhausted health workers and better support for heart patients waiting for vital treatment.
Prof Sir Nilesh Samani, Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Delay in diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases is not just about improving symptoms, however important that is – it is about saving lives.”
