By Nigel Foster2021-05-10T07:23:00+01:00 Nigel Foster on the need to not just restore services and reduce backlogs but to tackle potential inequalities in access, experience and outcomes The new national figures on waiting lists are unprecedented, with over 4.7 million people waiting and some 400,000 waiting more than a year. Unfortunately this is part of a wider story. As the latest NHS operational guidance makes clear, the task ahead extends beyond restoring services and reducing backlogs to identifying unmet need and meeting new care demands while at the same time understanding and then tackling potential inequalities in access, experience and outcomes.