
Gastroenterology services (covering conditions like Crohn's, Colitis, and IBS investigations) are under immense pressure. In Ashford and St Peter's, the wait for routine treatment is 54 weeks.
However, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust is bucking the trend with a wait of just 13 weeks.
South Tyneside and Sunderland benefit from being a large, merged trust with significant capacity. They have invested heavily in Endoscopy Units that run efficiently across their sites (South Tyneside District Hospital and Sunderland Royal).
This capacity allows them to clear diagnostic backlogs (like gastroscopies and colonoscopies) much faster than smaller, isolated units in the South.
If you are waiting over a year for a gastroenterology appointment:
Fast diagnosis is key in gastroenterology. Don't wait a year to find out what is wrong.






