NHS Scotland health board

NHS Highland

Public Health Scotland official statistics, August 2026. Medians are the midpoint wait so far of people still on the list — half have already waited longer.

91 days

Outpatient median so far (August 2026)

81 days

Inpatient/day-case median so far

23,287

Waiting for a first appointment

Outpatient waits by specialty

People waiting for a FIRST appointment with each specialty.

Specialty	Waiting	Median so far	9 in 10 within	>52 weeks
Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery	3,197	90 days	216 days	11
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)	2,554	137 days	440 days	379
Dermatology	2,477	88 days	281 days	28
General Surgery	2,451	81 days	215 days	3
Gynaecology	2,408	123 days	327 days	123
Gastroenterology	1,680	193 days	424 days	291
Ophthalmology	1,566	47 days	179 days	0
Oral Surgery	1,347	123 days	481 days	253
Rheumatology	810	159 days	370 days	98
Urology	687	49 days	177 days	13
Neurology	521	68 days	206 days	0
Clinical Neurophysiology	502	87 days	146 days	0
Respiratory Medicine	352	47 days	181 days	0
Cardiology	348	40 days	221 days	0
Orthodontics	336	97 days	294 days	11
Endocrinology	294	114 days	336 days	17
Neurosurgery	220	168 days	474 days	45
General Medicine	202	32 days	80 days	0
Paediatric Surgery	169	125 days	220 days	0
Vascular Surgery	147	32 days	69 days	0
Restorative Dentistry	116	112 days	154 days	0
Paediatrics	102	18 days	67 days	0
Geriatric Medicine	100	27 days	133 days	0
Clinical Oncology	100	19 days	126 days	0
Plastic Surgery	97	118 days	310 days	0
Pain Management	86	66 days	128 days	0
Haematology	85	42 days	161 days	2
Clinical Genetics	76	54 days	175 days	2
Diabetes	66	13 days	180 days	1
Rehabilitation Medicine	61	80 days	140 days	0
Chemical Pathology	57	42 days	99 days	0
Renal Medicine	45	31 days	72 days	0
Infectious Diseases	11	not published	not published	0
Community Child Health	8	not published	not published	0
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery	4	not published	not published	0
GP Other than Obstetrics	3	not published	not published	0
Endocrinology & Diabetes	2	not published	not published	1

Inpatient / day-case waits by specialty

People waiting for admission for treatment.

Specialty	Waiting	Median so far	9 in 10 within	>52 weeks
Ophthalmology	1,904	55 days	152 days	51
Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery	1,360	98 days	310 days	71
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)	866	108 days	291 days	14
General Surgery	860	98 days	279 days	13
Urology	507	163 days	422 days	72
Gynaecology	391	132 days	415 days	67
Community Dental Practice	182	96 days	209 days	1
Oral Surgery	176	116 days	193 days	1
Vascular Surgery	114	86 days	180 days	0
Plastic Surgery	109	212 days	550 days	30
Cardiology	77	19 days	60 days	0
Paediatrics	44	17 days	55 days	0
Clinical Oncology	28	30 days	285 days	1
Paediatric Surgery	17	not published	not published	0
General Medicine	15	not published	not published	0
Respiratory Medicine	12	not published	not published	0
Renal Medicine	4	not published	not published	0
Gastroenterology	3	not published	not published	0
Neurology	1	not published	not published	0

Month by month (outpatient median)

Month	Median (days)	Waiting
2024-08	130	27,413
2024-09	131	27,099
2024-10	132	26,848
2024-11	132	26,717
2024-12	137	26,666
2025-01	142	26,191
2025-02	141	25,782
2025-03	137	25,567
2025-04	135	26,268
2025-05	123	26,704
2025-06	118	26,163
2025-07	112	26,125
2025-08	108	25,296
2025-09	105	24,412
2025-10	99	23,482
2025-11	90	22,437
2025-12	90	22,168
2026-01	92	21,159
2026-02	86	20,687
2026-03	75	20,186
2026-04	77	20,630
2026-05	80	21,426
2026-06	82	22,255
2026-07	86	22,995
2026-08	91	23,287

Source: Public Health Scotland, Stage of Treatment Waiting Times, August 2026. Open Government Licence. Scottish stage-of-treatment waits are not comparable with English referral-to-treatment figures — see methodology. “Not published” = withheld or qualified by PHS, never zero.

Also on HospitalWaits: England (compare trusts)Wales (by health board)

Outpatient waits by specialty

People waiting for a FIRST appointment with each specialty.

Specialty	Waiting	Median so far	9 in 10 within	>52 weeks
Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery	3,197	90 days	216 days	11
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)	2,554	137 days	440 days	379
Dermatology	2,477	88 days	281 days	28
General Surgery	2,451	81 days	215 days	3
Gynaecology	2,408	123 days	327 days	123
Gastroenterology	1,680	193 days	424 days	291
Ophthalmology	1,566	47 days	179 days	0
Oral Surgery	1,347	123 days	481 days	253
Rheumatology	810	159 days	370 days	98
Urology	687	49 days	177 days	13
Neurology	521	68 days	206 days	0
Clinical Neurophysiology	502	87 days	146 days	0
Respiratory Medicine	352	47 days	181 days	0
Cardiology	348	40 days	221 days	0
Orthodontics	336	97 days	294 days	11
Endocrinology	294	114 days	336 days	17
Neurosurgery	220	168 days	474 days	45
General Medicine	202	32 days	80 days	0
Paediatric Surgery	169	125 days	220 days	0
Vascular Surgery	147	32 days	69 days	0
Restorative Dentistry	116	112 days	154 days	0
Paediatrics	102	18 days	67 days	0
Geriatric Medicine	100	27 days	133 days	0
Clinical Oncology	100	19 days	126 days	0
Plastic Surgery	97	118 days	310 days	0
Pain Management	86	66 days	128 days	0
Haematology	85	42 days	161 days	2
Clinical Genetics	76	54 days	175 days	2
Diabetes	66	13 days	180 days	1
Rehabilitation Medicine	61	80 days	140 days	0
Chemical Pathology	57	42 days	99 days	0
Renal Medicine	45	31 days	72 days	0
Infectious Diseases	11	not published	not published	0
Community Child Health	8	not published	not published	0
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery	4	not published	not published	0
GP Other than Obstetrics	3	not published	not published	0
Endocrinology & Diabetes	2	not published	not published	1

Inpatient / day-case waits by specialty

People waiting for admission for treatment.

Specialty	Waiting	Median so far	9 in 10 within	>52 weeks
Ophthalmology	1,904	55 days	152 days	51
Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery	1,360	98 days	310 days	71
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)	866	108 days	291 days	14
General Surgery	860	98 days	279 days	13
Urology	507	163 days	422 days	72
Gynaecology	391	132 days	415 days	67
Community Dental Practice	182	96 days	209 days	1
Oral Surgery	176	116 days	193 days	1
Vascular Surgery	114	86 days	180 days	0
Plastic Surgery	109	212 days	550 days	30
Cardiology	77	19 days	60 days	0
Paediatrics	44	17 days	55 days	0
Clinical Oncology	28	30 days	285 days	1
Paediatric Surgery	17	not published	not published	0
General Medicine	15	not published	not published	0
Respiratory Medicine	12	not published	not published	0
Renal Medicine	4	not published	not published	0
Gastroenterology	3	not published	not published	0
Neurology	1	not published	not published	0

Month by month (outpatient median)

Month	Median (days)	Waiting
2024-08	130	27,413
2024-09	131	27,099
2024-10	132	26,848
2024-11	132	26,717
2024-12	137	26,666
2025-01	142	26,191
2025-02	141	25,782
2025-03	137	25,567
2025-04	135	26,268
2025-05	123	26,704
2025-06	118	26,163
2025-07	112	26,125
2025-08	108	25,296
2025-09	105	24,412
2025-10	99	23,482
2025-11	90	22,437
2025-12	90	22,168
2026-01	92	21,159
2026-02	86	20,687
2026-03	75	20,186
2026-04	77	20,630
2026-05	80	21,426
2026-06	82	22,255
2026-07	86	22,995
2026-08	91	23,287