At a glance: 72,332 people were waiting for NHS treatment at University Hospitals Birmingham in June 2026, spread across 18 specialties, and 213 of them had already waited more than a year. The hardest specialty to be seen quickly was oral surgery — only 47% of patients seen within the 18-week target and a median wait of 19 weeks — while general medicine was quickest at 91%.
Treatment waiting times at University Hospitals Birmingham
| Specialty | People waiting | Seen within 18 weeks | Waiting over a year | Median wait |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oral surgery | 2,471 | 47% | 23 | 19 weeks |
| Neurology | 4,098 | 56% | 0 | 15 weeks |
| Neurosurgery | 1,937 | 60% | 0 | 14 weeks |
| Gynaecology | 8,666 | 60% | 1 | 15 weeks |
| General surgery | 4,434 | 64% | 2 | 14 weeks |
| Plastic surgery | 698 | 64% | 3 | 11 weeks |
| Ophthalmology | 9,131 | 65% | 57 | 12 weeks |
| Urology | 6,404 | 66% | 4 | 12 weeks |
| Gastroenterology | 6,656 | 66% | 0 | 12 weeks |
| Respiratory medicine | 2,941 | 67% | 1 | 11 weeks |
| ENT | 8,519 | 69% | 121 | 11 weeks |
| Dermatology | 5,330 | 74% | 0 | 9 weeks |
| Trauma & orthopaedics | 4,067 | 78% | 0 | 7 weeks |
| Cardiothoracic surgery | 185 | 83% | 0 | 7 weeks |
| Rheumatology | 1,050 | 87% | 0 | 6 weeks |
| Cardiology | 5,133 | 90% | 1 | 7 weeks |
| Elderly medicine | 290 | 90% | 0 | 7 weeks |
| General medicine | 322 | 91% | 0 | 5 weeks |
Diagnostic test waiting times at University Hospitals Birmingham
| Test | People waiting | Waiting beyond 6 weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Nerve conduction studies | 5,918 | 79% |
| Urodynamics | 225 | 66% |
| Flexible sigmoidoscopy | 777 | 64% |
| Colonoscopy | 2,905 | 60% |
| Cystoscopy | 573 | 60% |
| Gastroscopy | 2,647 | 60% |
| Ultrasound | 17,435 | 43% |
| Audiology | 849 | 41% |
| DEXA scan | 2,168 | 31% |
| MRI | 8,246 | 18% |
| CT | 4,888 | 15% |
| Sleep studies | 118 | 14% |
| Echocardiography | 1,950 | 1% |
The six-week point is where the NHS counts a diagnostic wait as a breach; at University Hospitals Birmingham the longest was nerve conduction studies, with 79% past it and 5,918 people in the queue.
Skip the 19-week wait
Waiting 19 weeks for oral surgery at University Hospitals Birmingham 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 University Hospitals Birmingham? 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 oral surgery 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.