Almost 800,000 patients wait an average of 122 days to undergo surgery in public health, according to data from the Ministry of Health at the end of 2022. Likewise, the average wait for consultation with a specialist is estimated at 95 days.
It is estimated that there are a total of 793,521 patients on the waiting list for non-urgent surgery, a new all-time record that represents 86,781 more patients than at the end of 2021.
The waiting time continues at values ​​similar to the last semester of 2021 when it was 123 days. In addition, it is also estimated that 22% of patients have been on the list for more than six months, with Neurosurgery being the most affected specialty, 43.2% waiting for more than a semester.
By number of patients, Traumatology is the specialty with the most people awaiting surgery (190,990), followed by Ophthalmology, with 172,093, and General and Digestive System Surgery, with 145,149.
Due to waiting time, in addition to Neurosurgery patients, Plastic Surgery patients accumulate the most delays. 40.5% must wait more than six months to be intervened in public health.
The autonomous communities with the highest percentage of patients waiting for more than one semester are Extremadura (32% of patients), Catalonia (31.6%), Castilla-La Mancha (29%) and the Canary Islands (28.5%). In contrast, the Community of Madrid is the one with the lowest percentage of patients with prolonged delays of more than one semester, only 4.3%, followed by Galicia (6.7%) and the Basque Country (7.1%).
The Canary Islands and Castilla-La Mancha have the longest waiting times with an average of 157 days. They are followed by Extremadura (156) and Catalonia and Cantabria with 154. All these communities have waiting times much higher than the national average of 122 days. Also in this case, the Community of Madrid has one of the shortest average waiting times, 63 days, along with the Basque Country (73) and Galicia (75).
In consultations and basic specialties, the average waiting time has also increased, rising from an average of 89 days in December 2021 to 95 days at the end of 2022.
Neurology consultations are those with the longest waiting times (113 days), followed by Dermatology (110) and Traumatology (102). In contrast, General Surgery and Gynecology have shorter times, with an average of 65 and 69 days respectively.
Andalusia is in the tail as the most affected community with an average waiting time of 123 days for consultation with a specialist, followed by the Canary Islands (121), Navarra (99) and Castilla y León (95). The best positioned is the Basque Country, with 48 days.
In the National Health System as a whole, 85.7 people per 1,000 inhabitants are waiting for a first consultation with a specialist
