NHS staff shortages led to 30,000 cancelled operations last year, data reveals

NHS trusts had to call off 30,000 operations last year because there were not enough staff for them to go ahead, data has revealed.

Staff shortages were the most common for cancelling, accounting for one in five of all operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons in 2021/2022.

Data requested by Labour under freedom of information laws showed that around 158,000 operations were cancelled for non-clinical reasons.

Of those, about 10,000 were urgent operations, 2,500 were operations for cancer patients, and 8,000 were operations on children.

Labour’s analysis found 13,000 operations were cancelled because of a shortage of beds, 5,700 because of equipment failure, 12,600 because of administrative errors, 15,500 as theatre lists overran, 9,500 because an emergency case took priority and 250 due to adverse weather.

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Labour said the number of cancelled operations has doubled since 2018/2019, when 79,000 were cancelled.

The number of operations cancelled due to staff shortages tripled in that period, jumping from 10,900 to 30,000.

Staff vacancies in the NHS are at a record high, NHS Digital data shows.

The vacancy rate across the NHS in England – the number of vacancies as a proportion of planned staffing levels – stood at 9.7% at the end of September.

More than 133,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) posts are unfilled.

Meanwhile, an average of 54,581 NHS staff were off sick in England in the seven days to 4 December.

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Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said: “Patients are forced to wait longer for vital operations because the Conservatives have failed to train enough staff over the past 12 years.

“Having operations cancelled causes huge disruption to patients, and prevents them from being able to get on with their lives.”

He said Labour would “tackle this problem at its root”.

“We will train a new generation of doctors and nurses so patients get the treatment they need when they need it.

“We will abolish non-doms to pay for it because patients need treatment more than the wealthiest need a tax break, and if you live and work in Britain you should pay your taxes here.”