More than 20,000 patients in Scotland are waiting for a cardiology appointment, according to new figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives.
The stats, obtained under Freedom of Information laws, show that, as of September 2025, 20,549 are on a waiting list to see a heart specialist, of which 9,448 have been waiting longer than the SNP’s 12-week target for outpatient appointments.
The “alarming” figures come against a backdrop of one in four deaths in Scotland resulting from cardiovascular disease.
The figures also reveal that over 26,000 people are waiting for an echocardiogram (a heart scan), of which over 20,000 have been waiting longer than the SNP’s six-week target. More than 5,000 people have been waiting over a year, an increase from 12 months earlier.
Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary Dr Sandesh Gulhane condemned the figures as proof that the SNP are failing to meet yet another key health target.
Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary Dr Sandesh Gulhane MSP said: “These alarming figures must be a wake-up call for SNP ministers.
“Heart disease is Scotland’s biggest killer and every delayed appointment is not just frustrating for patients, it is increasing the possibility of an avoidable death.
“Cardiology is yet another crucial area of the NHS where the Nationalists are abjectly failing to meet their own targets because of years of poor workforce planning and mismanagement.
“It’s time for the SNP to move resources away from bureaucracy and get them to the frontline where they belong.”
Notes to editors
There were 20,549 people waiting for a cardiology outpatient appointment in September 2025. This figure is collated from all NHS health boards minus NHS Shetland. (NHS health boards FOIs, November 2025, available upon request)
There were 9,448 people waiting more than the 12-week target for a cardiology outpatient appointment in September 2025. This is above the 12-week target for new outpatient appointments. (NHS health boards FOIs, November 2025, available upon request; NHS Inform, Accessed 10 December 2025, link)
There were 356 people waiting more than a year for a cardiology outpatient appointment in September 2025. NHS Ayrshire and Arran had the highest number of people waiting more than a year at 191. (NHS health boards FOIs, November 2025, available upon request)
The longest wait for a cardiology outpatient appointment was 806 days in NHS Grampian. The second longest wait was 523 days in NHS Fife, and the third longest wait was 508 days in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. (NHS health boards FOIs, November 2025, available upon request)