Referral to treatment (RTT) data for August 2026, published 8 October 2026 · Page updated 2 November 2026

General surgery waiting times at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust

NHS England referral to treatment (RTT) figures for consultant-led general surgery care at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, in the NHS England South West region. Patients waiting at the end of August 2026. General surgery covers a wide range of operations, for example hernias, gallbladder removal and some bowel and breast surgery (the mix varies by hospital).

Short answer: At the end of August 2026, 712 pathways were waiting for consultant-led general surgery care at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust. Half had waited 10.2 weeks or less so far (England 12.8 weeks), 74.4% had waited under 18 weeks (England 63.2%; standard 92%) and 0 had waited over 52 weeks.

Source: NHS England referral to treatment (RTT) statistics, published 8 October 2026. These are past figures, not a forecast of how long you will wait.

10.2 wksmedian wait so far: half had waited less (England 12.8 weeks)

74.4%waiting under 18 weeks (England 63.2%; standard 92%)

712pathways waiting at the end of August 2026

0waiting over 52 weeks (0.0% of the list)

Figures are for patients waiting at the end of August 2026 (NHS England RTT, published 8 October 2026). They show how long people had waited so far, not how long a new referral will wait, and they are not a guarantee of any wait. A pathway is one patient’s wait for one specialty; a person can be on more than one list.

General surgery at Bristol: summary

At the end of August 2026 the median general surgery wait so far at Bristol was 10.2 weeks, shorter than England’s 12.8 weeks (a difference of 2.6 weeks, or 20%). 74.4% had waited under 18 weeks, 10.4 percentage points more than across the South West region (64.0%). It ranked 19th shortest of 113 NHS trusts for this measure, in the quarter of trusts with the shortest median general surgery waits. The median was broadly flat between the end of February 2026 and August 2026 (10.3 weeks to 10.2 weeks), while the list grew by 658 pathways (1219%). Over the same months the England median went from 13.9 weeks to 12.8 weeks. None of the 712 pathways had waited over 52 weeks (England 2.1%). Of the 8 other NHS trusts within 60 miles, only University Hospitals Dorset (about 58 miles away, median 2.5 weeks) had a shorter median.

How does Bristol compare for general surgery?

General surgery waits, end of August 2026
Measure	Bristol	South West region	England
Pathways waiting	712	21,004	384,914
Waited under 18 weeks	74.4%	64.0%	63.2%
Median weeks waited	10.2	not calculated	12.8
92nd percentile weeks waited	31	not calculated	42
Waited over 52 weeks	0 (0.0%)	329 (1.6%)	8,213 (2.1%)

Region figures are a Waiting Times UK calculation: we add up NHS England’s figures for the 30 NHS and independent providers in the South West region with this specialty. Medians and percentiles cannot be added up, so we do not show them for the region. The under-18-weeks share leaves out pathways with an unknown start date, as NHS England does.

Of the 113 NHS trusts in England with at least 20 general surgery pathways waiting, 18 had a shorter median wait than Bristol and 94 a longer one. See every trust on the general surgery waits page.

Has the general surgery wait at Bristol changed?

At the end of February 2026, 54 pathways were waiting and the median wait so far was 10.3 weeks. At the end of August 2026, 712 pathways were waiting and the median was 10.2 weeks. Past changes do not predict future waits.

Bristol: median general surgery wait (weeks) England general surgery

General surgery at Bristol, month by month
Month end	Waiting	Median weeks	Under 18 weeks
February 2026	54	10.3	85.2%
March 2026	93	8.2	75.3%
April 2026	108	6.0	83.3%
May 2026	108	6.5	88.0%
June 2026	111	8.4	76.6%
July 2026	777	9.1	72.8%
August 2026	712	10.2	74.4%

Which nearby trusts treat general surgery?

General surgery: nearby NHS trusts, end of August 2026
Nearby trust	Distance	Median weeks	Under 18 weeks	Waiting
Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust	about 10 miles	14.2	61.8%	3,847
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust	about 38 miles	14.9	59.3%	4,596
Somerset NHS Foundation Trust	about 38 miles	12.2	62.7%	2,627
Wye Valley NHS Trust	about 42 miles	13.1	61.5%	885
Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust	about 45 miles	13.3	66.1%	1,198
Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust	about 52 miles	19.5	46.4%	1,408

Straight-line distance between the trusts’ registered addresses in the NHS Organisation Data Service. A trust may run several hospitals, so the site you are treated at can be elsewhere. Only trusts with at least 20 general surgery pathways waiting are listed.

Find general surgery waits near your postcode (England only).

Can I choose a hospital with a shorter wait?

In England you have a legal right to start consultant-led, non-urgent treatment within 18 weeks of referral, with some exceptions, and you can usually choose where you are referred for a first outpatient appointment. Each hospital has a Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) that can help with questions about your wait. Your waiting time rights explained.

Not medical advice. If your symptoms change or get worse while you wait, contact your GP or the team treating you. If it is not an emergency, NHS 111 online or calling 111 can tell you where to go, including urgent treatment centres, which often have shorter waits. Call 999 or go to A&E for life-threatening emergencies such as chest pain, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding or signs of a stroke.

More waiting times

Other specialties at Bristol

Frequently asked questions

How long is the wait for general surgery at Bristol?

At the end of August 2026, half of the 712 pathways waiting for general surgery at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust had waited 10.2 weeks or less, and 74.4% had waited under 18 weeks. This is how long people on the list had waited so far, not a prediction of how long a new referral will take.

How does Bristol compare with England for general surgery?

Across England the median general surgery wait was 12.8 weeks and 63.2% had waited under 18 weeks at the end of August 2026. Of 113 NHS trusts with at least 20 pathways waiting, 18 had a shorter median wait.

Is this page from the NHS?

No. Waiting Times UK is an independent website, not part of the NHS, and this is not medical advice. The figures are NHS England’s, reproduced under the Open Government Licence.

How should I cite these figures?

Waiting Times UK, “General surgery waiting times at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust”, NHS England RTT data for August 2026, https://waitingtimesuk.co.uk/specialty-waits/bristol-nhs-foundation-trust/general-surgery (accessed [date]). Where possible, cite the official publisher too.

Who wrote this page and where do the figures come from?

Written and maintained by the Waiting Times UK editorial team at Oaknest Media Ltd, an independent publisher that is not part of the NHS. Every figure is taken from an official publication, shown with its date, and linked below; where we add up or compare figures ourselves we say so. This page has not been reviewed by a clinician and is not medical advice. Page last updated 2 November 2026, from the data files named below. Figures change when the publisher releases new data.

NHS England: Referral to treatment waiting times (August 2026, published 8 October 2026)
NHS England: Referral to treatment waiting times, full CSV data files (February 2026 to August 2026; used for the month-by-month trend)
NHS England: Organisation Data Service (trust registered addresses, used for distances), geocoded with postcodes.io (ONS Postcode Directory, OGL)

Official statistics are reproduced under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See data sources and methods and about Waiting Times UK.

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