Stop Waiting

20/02/2026

💙 Friday Feedback 💙

We never take messages like this for granted. Knowing that we’ve been there for someone at exactly the right moment — when they felt stuck, worried, or unsure what to do next — is why StopWaiting exists.

If you’re currently on an NHS waiting list and feeling frustrated, please know there are options. Sometimes a small step, the right question, or the right guidance can make an enormous difference.

Here’s what one of our lovely clients shared with us this week 👇

If our service has helped you too, we’d love to hear your story. And if you’re still waiting — don’t do it alone.

18/02/2026

📰 Thousands of NHS Hip & Knee Operations to be cancelled - BREAKING NEWS.

A global shortage of bone cement — a key material used to fix hip and knee replacements — has forced the NHS to pause or cancel tens of thousands of planned hip and knee operations for up to two months. This is about to hit patients hard, many of whom have already been waiting long periods and are living with daily pain while waiting for surgery.

The disruption is expected to worsen an already huge orthopaedic backlog, with hundreds of thousands of people still waiting for surgery.

For many patients who have waited months — even years — for a planned joint replacement, cancellations like this can feel devastating and leave life on hold. That’s why finding quicker NHS-funded alternatives is so important for people in pain.

👉 If you’re stuck on a long waiting list or facing delays like this, StopWaiting can help:
✔ We search for the shortest waiting times at NHS-partnered private hospitals
✔ We work within your preferred travel distance
✔ We show you how to get referred there under NHS Patient Choice
✔ All with clear guidance and support — and NHS-funded care at no cost to you

Don’t just stay on a waiting list — get proactive and find a faster route to treatment. Visit www.stopwaiting.co.uk
to see how we can help. 💙

Tens of thousands of Brits face having their hip and knee operations cancelled due to a global shortage of bone cement. Health officials have reportedly held emergency meetings after it emerged the…

15/02/2026

Incredible story. Waiting lists falling because patients are being removed as an admin exercise without even being treated. Nearly one in five patients = removed from their list. Just wow 😮

The number of people waiting for treatment is at its lowest level since February 2023, but recent improvements have been limited, and problems with the data mean it's not clear exactly why it's falling.

13/02/2026

💙 Friday Feedback! 💙

Andrea shared this incredible review this week after being stuck on an urgent cardiology waiting list for months…

By simply using our advice, she was able to secure a much sooner NHS appointment — and the relief was immediate.

✨ This is exactly why StopWaiting exists:
To help people understand their NHS choices, explore faster options, and get seen sooner.

If you or a loved one are waiting for treatment, don’t assume you have to stay stuck in the same waiting list.

📍We can help find quicker alternatives
📍You can travel if you wish
📍You can be seen sooner

👉 Visit StopWaiting.co.uk and let us help turn things around for you too.

If you've been told you'll wait many months or even years for your hip, knee or other NHS procedure, you're not alone.For many people, a long wait is painful and life-limiting.What most

02/02/2026

🚨 Big NHS news — and people are furious.

New analysis shows that instead of treating more patients, the Labour government has been paying hospitals roughly £3 million every month just to remove people from NHS waiting lists — even if they haven’t actually received the care they’re still waiting for.

Critics say this payment-for-removal tactic makes the NHS waiting lists look smaller on paper without delivering real treatment, raising serious questions about what “waiting-list progress” really means.

If you need some support with waiting times; We’re here, it’s what we do.

www.stopwaiting.co.uk

Hundreds of thousands of people are being deleted from lists without receiving the treatment they were waiting for in a process known as 'list cleansing' or 'validation'.

01/02/2026

Four people. One hip replacement. Very different outcomes.
These are the choices people make every day.

Frank

Frank does what he’s told to do.
He sees his GP and is referred into his local NHS trust.
9 months waiting just to see a consultant
Then another 18 months waiting for surgery
Pain, stiffness, and declining mobility become part of daily life
Frank waits. And waits.

Anne

Anne is in pain and struggling to get around.
She decides she can’t wait that long.
Pays £18,000 for a private hip replacement
Seen within 6 weeks
Treated quickly, mobility restored
Anne gets her life back — but at a huge personal cost.

Sarah

Sarah knows NHS waiting lists are long and UK private surgery is expensive.
So she looks overseas.
Flies to Eastern Europe
Pays £8,000 for surgery
Navigates travel, aftercare, and follow-up far from home
Sarah saves money — but takes on risk and complexity.

Geoff

Geoff starts exactly where Frank did.
He sees his GP and is referred into the NHS.
But Geoff knows his choices.
He uses his NHS right to choose
He’s treated in a private hospital
By the same consultant who treated Anne
NHS-funded
Surgery completed in 11 weeks
Geoff pays nothing — and doesn’t wait years.
Same NHS. Same surgeons. Very different outcomes.

Most people are never told that NHS-funded private treatment is often available — with dramatically shorter waiting times.

That’s where StopWaiting comes in.

We help you:

Understand your NHS Right to Choose
See which hospitals have shorter waits
Access private hospitals paid for by the NHS
Move faster, without paying privately or going abroad
You don’t have to choose between pain, debt, or flying overseas.

Know your options.
Use your NHS funding.
Stop waiting.

Be like Geoff.
We'll help you do it.

👉 Visit

If you're facing a long NHS wait, you're not alone - and you have options. We help patients use their NHS Patient Choice rights to access hospitals with shorter waiting times (even

31/01/2026

30/01/2026

Friday Feedback 💬

We love ending the week by sharing real stories from people who’ve used StopWaiting to navigate the NHS system.

Today’s feedback comes from Jim, who had been living with hip pain for years and was initially told he could be facing a very long wait for surgery. After using our advice and understanding his NHS choices, things moved much faster than he ever expected.

Here’s Jim’s experience, in his own words 👇

On an long NHS waiting list, or about to be referred?We help you use your legal rights to find hospitals (even NHS-partnered private ones) with the shortest waiting times, within your preferred travel

20/01/2026

Orthopaedics can have some significantly long NHS waiting lists.

It's quicker to go private, but not many can afford it.

Patient Choice gives you the best of both worlds.

How is this possible? The NHS has partnered with selected private hospitals to support the drive to get waiting lists down, and your treatment doesn't cost you a penny..

We can support you in finding a selection of hospitals with the shortest waiting times for your treatment, and give you all the support necessary to ensure it happens.

www.stopwaiting.co.uk

16/01/2026

💬 Feedback Friday!

We love hearing how things turn out for the people we support — and this one really made us smile. After a bit of persistence, a consultation is now booked (outside working hours too 🙌), with surgery expected far sooner than first feared.

Most importantly, it means there’s real hope of being pain-free for one of life’s biggest moments. 💙

If you’re currently stuck waiting, unsure of your options, or wondering whether things could move sooner, this is exactly why we do what we do.

This is not private healthcare; it's the NHS working as it should.

www.stopwaiting.co.uk

On an long NHS waiting list, or about to be referred?We help you use your legal rights to find hospitals (even NHS-partnered private ones) with the shortest waiting times, within your preferred travel

15/01/2026

Interesting story.. Labour says a new NHS programme is cutting waiting lists up to five times faster in areas with high unemployment, by sending in specialist “crack teams” to clear backlogs.

The scheme uses “Formula 1-style” high-flow surgery, longer opening hours and smarter use of technology to treat patients faster and help more working-age people return to work.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting says waiting lists are down by 225,000 since July 2024, with the biggest improvements in 20 targeted areas – mainly in the North.

Labour is putting the jobless first in a drive to cut NHS waiting lists. In a move to get more people back to work, health officials said a new programme was clearing backlogs three times faster in areas of high unemployment. They said “crack teams” of medics have been sent into the 20 parts of ...

23/12/2025

🎄✨ Season’s Greetings from all of us at StopWaiting ✨🎄

As the year draws to a close, we’d like to wish all our patients, friends, and colleagues a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year.

Thank you for the trust you’ve placed in us, the conversations we’ve shared, and the progress we’ve helped make together throughout the year. It’s a privilege to support people in navigating their healthcare options, and we’re grateful to everyone who has been part of our journey in 2025.

We look forward to continuing to support you in the year ahead. Until then, we hope you enjoy a peaceful festive period filled with warmth, rest, and time with those who matter most. 🎁💙

—
The StopWaiting Team
🌐 stopwaiting.co.uk