At a glance: 14,857 people were waiting for NHS treatment at George Eliot Hospital in June 2026, spread across 14 specialties, and 73 of them had already waited more than a year. The hardest specialty to be seen quickly was ENT — only 40% of patients seen within the 18-week target and a median wait of 22 weeks — while rheumatology was quickest at 96%.
Treatment waiting times at George Eliot Hospital
| Specialty | People waiting | Seen within 18 weeks | Waiting over a year | Median wait |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENT | 2,261 | 40% | 37 | 22 weeks |
| Oral surgery | 1,139 | 41% | 8 | 21 weeks |
| General surgery | 1,331 | 56% | 4 | 15 weeks |
| Urology | 1,811 | 62% | 5 | 13 weeks |
| Gynaecology | 1,664 | 69% | 9 | 10 weeks |
| Gastroenterology | 1,168 | 74% | 4 | 10 weeks |
| Respiratory medicine | 600 | 75% | 0 | 8 weeks |
| General medicine | 266 | 76% | 0 | 7 weeks |
| Trauma & orthopaedics | 2,003 | 77% | 1 | 9 weeks |
| Ophthalmology | 911 | 77% | 5 | 9 weeks |
| Cardiology | 1,235 | 80% | 0 | 9 weeks |
| Elderly medicine | 87 | 85% | 0 | 9 weeks |
| Plastic surgery | 109 | 93% | 0 | 3 weeks |
| Rheumatology | 272 | 96% | 0 | 5 weeks |
Diagnostic test waiting times at George Eliot Hospital
| Test | People waiting | Waiting beyond 6 weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Echocardiography | 1,275 | 65% |
| Sleep studies | 391 | 55% |
| MRI | 1,930 | 28% |
| Gastroscopy | 204 | 11% |
| Flexible sigmoidoscopy | 87 | 10% |
| Colonoscopy | 144 | 7% |
| CT | 579 | 2% |
| Ultrasound | 1,120 | 1% |
| DEXA scan | 152 | 0% |
| Urodynamics | 95 | 0% |
The six-week point is where the NHS counts a diagnostic wait as a breach; at George Eliot Hospital the longest was echocardiography, with 65% past it and 1,275 people in the queue.
Skip the 22-week wait
Waiting 22 weeks for ENT at George Eliot Hospital is a long time to be in pain or limbo. Private cover can have you seen by a consultant in days rather than months. It will not pay for a condition you are already waiting on, so it only helps if arranged before a problem starts — compare cover, see whether it is worth it, or get a free quote now.
Frequently asked questions
Can private cover skip the waiting list at George Eliot Hospital? Yes for a new problem, no for one you are already waiting to have treated — here is what private cover gets you over the NHS. For the national picture see ENT waits across England or our NHS waiting-time guides.
Source: NHS England Referral to Treatment (RTT) and Diagnostics (DM01) waiting-times statistics, June 2026; self-pay figures from UK private hospitals’ own published price lists. Waiting-list figures change monthly.