GWENT hospitals are winning the battle to meet waiting times targets for a range of diagnostic tests and therapies - but there will be further challenges as the NHS in Wales works toward a 26-week overall maximum wait.

Seven diagnostic procedures, including endoscopy, cardiophysiology and radiology (x-rays and scans) are subject to a maximum 14-week target, achievable by the end of March.

Seven therapies, including audiology (adult hearing aids), dietetics, occupational therapy and physiotherapy, are subject to a maximum 24-week wait, to be achieved in the same timescale.

In Gwent, diagnostic endoscopy - mainly camera-exploration of gastro-intestinal areas - presents one of the big challenges, with almost 550 patients having waited longer than 14 weeks by November, the latest figures available.

But even here the trend is downward, and in other areas such as cardiophysiology, which includes echo-cardiograms and stress tests for heart patients, the numbers waiting longer than the target time is under three figures.

Progress is also being made in Gwent in bringing down the physiotherapy, occupational therapy and other therapy waiting times below the maximum.

During 2008 the waiting times focus will shift to what is being called the RTT (referral to treatment time).

This will take in the time from when a patient is referred by their GP to when treatment is carried out. By the end of December 2009 the maximum RTT will be 26 weeks.

Diagnostics and therapies will be incorporated into this RTT and the aim is to reduce the wait for the diagnostic element to four weeks.

Therapy waits must be reduced to a maximum of 14 weeks by the beginning of next year, though it is unclear what the waiting time for these will be within the 26-week RTT.