NHS performance in August/September 2019 showed a decline in A&E performance against the 4-hour target, with more patients waiting over 12 hours and an increase in those waiting over 8 weeks for diagnostics and over 14 weeks for therapy services. While the percentage of cancer patients treated within target times saw mixed results, the overall number of delayed transfers of care rose, impacting service delivery. Additionally, average daily ambulance responses continued to be below the performance target for a third month in a row.

1. NHS Activity &
Performance Summary
August/September
2019
17 October 2019

2. A&E performance against the 4
hour target decreased this month,
and more patients spent longer
than 12 hours in A&E. The number of patients
waiting over 8 weeks
for diagnostic services
and the number waiting
over 14 weeks for
therapy
services increased.
The percentage of patients waiting less
than 26 weeks from referral to treatment
decreased and the number waiting
longer than 36 weeks increased.
The average number
of daily referrals
received decreased
over the month.
The percentage of cancer
patients starting treatment within
the target time increased for
patients on the urgent pathway,
but decreased for the not via
urgent pathway.
Average daily calls
to the ambulance
service were down
from last month;
the target was met,
but performance
was below 70% for
the third
consecutive month.
The number of
delayed
transfers of care
increased this
month.

3. 81.7% of patients
newly diagnosed with cancer
via the Urgent route started
treatment within target time
(62 days), up 2.0 percentage
points from July.
96.6% of patients
newly diagnosed with cancer
not via the Urgent route
started treatment within
target time (31 days), down
0.9 percentage points from
July.
NHS Cancer Waiting Times
August
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Apr-
12
Oct-
12
Apr-
13
Oct-
13
Apr-
14
Oct-
14
Apr-
15
Oct-
15
Apr-
16
Oct-
16
Apr-
17
Oct-
17
Apr-
18
Oct-
18
Apr-
19
Percentageofpatients
Percentage of patients starting treatment
within the target times
Not via Urgent suspected route
Urgent Suspected route
Source: Cancer waiting times data, Welsh Local Health Boards

4. 0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Sep-
11
Mar-
12
Sep-
12
Mar-
13
Sep-
13
Mar-
14
Sep-
14
Mar-
15
Sep-
15
Mar-
16
Sep-
16
Mar-
17
Sep-
17
Mar-
18
Sep-
18
Mar-
19
PercentageofPatientPathways
Waiting less than 36 weeks Waiting less than 26 weeks
Patient pathways waiting to start treatment
Source: Referral to treatment times, NHS Wales Informatics Services (NWIS)
85.7% of patient
pathways waiting to start
treatment in August had
been waiting less than
26 weeks, 1.6 percentage
points lower than July.
Referral to Treatment Times
August
19,100 patient
pathways had been
waiting over 36 weeks to
start treatment in August,
an increase of 3,557 since
July.

5. 0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
Oct-09Apr-10Oct-10Apr-11Oct-11Apr-12Oct-12Apr-13Oct-13Apr-14Oct-14Apr-15Oct-15Apr-16Oct-16Apr-17Oct-17Apr-18Oct-18Apr-19
Numberofpatients
Diagnostics waiting over 8 weeks
Therapies waiting over 14 weeks
Source: Diagnostic and therapy services waiting times, NHS Wales Informatics Service
Number of patients waiting over the standard time for
diagnostic and therapy services
460 people were
waiting over 14 weeks
for therapy services in
August, an increase of
144 compared to July.
NHS diagnostic and therapy service waiting times
August
5,091 patients were
waiting over 8 weeks for
diagnostic services in
August, an increase of
933 compared to July.

6. 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Apr-12
Jul-12
Oct-12
Jan-13
Apr-13
Jul-13
Oct-13
Jan-14
Apr-14
Jul-14
Oct-14
Jan-15
Apr-15
Jul-15
Oct-15
Jan-16
Apr-16
Jul-16
Oct-16
Jan-17
Apr-17
Jul-17
Oct-17
Jan-18
Apr-18
Jul-18
Oct-18
Jan-19
Apr-19
Jul-19
Percentofpatients
Time spent in NHS accident and emergency
departments
Under 12 hours
Under 4 hours
Source: Emergency Department Data Set (EDDS)
Time spent in NHS accident and emergency departments
September
5,708 patients
spent 12 hours or
more in A&E in
September, 861 more
than in August.
75.0% of
patients spent less
than 4 hours in A&E
in September, 2.2
percentage points less
than in August.

7. Delayed Transfers of Care
September
490 delayed
transfers of care
were reported in the
September 2019
census, up from
489 in August 2019.0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
'05 '06 '07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19
Delayed Transfers of Care: October 2004 to September
2019
Delays
Last 3 months average
Source: Delayed transfers of care database, NHS Wales Informatics Services (NWIS)
NOTE: an increase in October 2009 was probably partly due to revised procedures

8. Ambulance services
September
The percentage of red calls arriving at the
scene within 8 minutes in September 2019
was above the 65% target, but down on the
previous month and below 70% for the third
consecutive month.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Dec'15
Jan'16
Feb'16
Mar'16
Apr'16
May'16
Jun'16
Jul'16
Aug'16
Sep'16
Oct'16
Nov'16
Dec'16
Jan'17
Feb'17
Mar'17
Apr'17
May'17
Jun'17
Jul'17
Aug'17
Sep'17
Oct'17
Nov'17
Dec'17
Jan'18
Feb'18
Mar'18
Apr'18
May'18
Jun'18
Jul'18
Aug'18
Sep'18
Oct'18
Nov'18
Dec'18
Jan'19
Feb'19
Mar'19
Apr'19
May'19
Jun'19
Jul'19
Aug'19
Sep'19
Percentage
Red calls - % of emergency responses arriving at the
scene within 8 minutes
Source: Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust

9. Web Links
NHS Cancer Waiting Times
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
Referral to Treatment Times
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
NHS diagnostic and therapy service waiting
times
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
Ambulance services
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
Delayed Transfers of Care
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
Time spent in NHS accident and emergency
departments
NHS activity and performance summary dashboard
StatsWales
Annual publication
Further information
Contact: stats.healthinfo@gov.wales