THE NUMBER of people waiting for a heart scan has soared in the area.
More than 30 times more people under the care of Berkshire West CCG are waiting more than six weeks for an echocardiogram.
The number of the waiting list has climbed from six people waiting more than six weeks in February 2020, to 183 in September this year.
The British Heart Foundation is concerned that widescale disruption and reduced access to these tests has created a huge “hidden” backlog of people with heart disease who have not yet made it onto treatment waiting lists.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, associate medical director at the BHF, said: “Waiting lists for heart treatments were too long even before the pandemic began, and they are now rising to record levels.
“Yet this is only half the story. Without an echocardiogram, doctors can’t see how well the heart is working and if someone needs potentially life saving treatment for heart disease.
“This matters because the long delays we now see for heart imaging tests create a domino effect of disruption to heart care and treatment that ultimately puts lives at risk. This is all the more tragic when effective heart treatments exist.”
Dr Babu-Narayan called for the backlog to be addressed urgently.
“We need to see a specific plan for cardiovascular care recovery focused on tackling cardiology vacancies, training more heart specialists, and using new diagnostic hubs to deliver delayed heart diagnosis and care,” she said. “This could make all the difference in preventing more deaths and disability from treatable heart conditions.”
