At a glance: 20,026 people were waiting for NHS treatment at Walsall Healthcare in June 2026, spread across 13 specialties, and 2 of them had already waited more than a year. The hardest specialty to be seen quickly was general surgery — only 56% of patients seen within the 18-week target and a median wait of 15 weeks — while elderly medicine was quickest at 97%.
Treatment waiting times at Walsall Healthcare
| Specialty | People waiting | Seen within 18 weeks | Waiting over a year | Median wait |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General surgery | 1,707 | 56% | 0 | 15 weeks |
| Oral surgery | 2,211 | 60% | 0 | 14 weeks |
| Trauma & orthopaedics | 3,800 | 63% | 1 | 12 weeks |
| Rheumatology | 896 | 69% | 0 | 11 weeks |
| ENT | 2,716 | 71% | 1 | 11 weeks |
| Dermatology | 1,137 | 77% | 0 | 6 weeks |
| Gynaecology | 2,347 | 79% | 0 | 8 weeks |
| Ophthalmology | 930 | 89% | 0 | 7 weeks |
| Gastroenterology | 956 | 93% | 0 | 9 weeks |
| Cardiology | 1,875 | 95% | 0 | 6 weeks |
| Neurology | 615 | 95% | 0 | 6 weeks |
| Respiratory medicine | 672 | 96% | 0 | 8 weeks |
| Elderly medicine | 164 | 97% | 0 | 4 weeks |
Diagnostic test waiting times at Walsall Healthcare
| Test | People waiting | Waiting beyond 6 weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Nerve conduction studies | 485 | 59% |
| Audiology | 592 | 52% |
| MRI | 4,652 | 43% |
| Ultrasound | 2,285 | 15% |
| Flexible sigmoidoscopy | 144 | 6% |
| Colonoscopy | 348 | 4% |
| CT | 1,121 | 2% |
| Echocardiography | 598 | 2% |
| Sleep studies | 181 | 0% |
| Gastroscopy | 402 | 0% |
The six-week point is where the NHS counts a diagnostic wait as a breach; at Walsall Healthcare the longest was nerve conduction studies, with 59% past it and 485 people in the queue.
Skip the 15-week wait
Waiting 15 weeks for general surgery at Walsall Healthcare is a long time to be in pain or limbo. A self-pay hernia repair costs around £3,668, and private medical insurance covers treatment like it in full — usually within weeks, not 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 Walsall Healthcare? 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 general 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.