Hospital waiting times

Request waiting time data by specialty and target performance.

NHS boards track how long patients wait for treatment. Published statistics often cover Scotland as a whole. Requesting data for a specific hospital or specialty gives a more detailed picture.

Dear [AUTHORITY NAME], Please provide the following information for [HOSPITAL NAME] as at [DATE e.g. 31 March 2025]: 1. The number of patients waiting for a first outpatient appointment, broken down by specialty. 2. For each specialty, the number of patients who had been waiting longer than 12 weeks. I would prefer to receive this by email. Yours faithfully, [YOUR NAME]
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Who to send it to#

The relevant NHS board. Use the Commissioner’s directory of Scottish public authorities to find the right board for your area. You can also send your request through WhatDoTheyKnow, which publishes responses online.

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Tips#

  • Name a specific hospital and a specific date or end of quarter. NHS boards report waiting times at set points, so a quarter-end date (e.g. 31 March, 30 June) is most likely to match their records.
  • Outpatient waits are a good starting point. You can make separate requests for diagnostic waits or inpatient/day-case treatment waits.
  • If you want to compare performance over time, request the same data for the same date in previous years as a follow-up.