Public satisfaction with NHS drops to lowest level in 25 years

A survey suggests public satisfaction with the health service has dropped to a 25-year low after a sharp drop during the pandemic.

The British Social Attitudes Poll, which is seen as the gold standard measure of public opinion, found 36 per cent of the 3,100 asked were satisfied in 2021, a drop from 53 per cent the year before, the largest fall in a single year.

Complaints included taking too long to get a GP appointment or hospital care, and not enough staff.  Satisfaction with hospital services and GP care were both at their lowest levels since the survey began in 1983.

The survey findings have been published by the Nuffield Trust and King’s Fund think tanks.

Senior fellow at the King’s Fund, Dan Wellings, described the findings as “extraordinary”.

He added that the NHS initially saw a “halo” effect at the start of the pandemic, with satisfaction rates being maintained as the NHS struggled through the first wave, but he said it was clear that had now gone.

“People are often struggling to get the care they need.  These issues have been exacerbated by the extraordinary events of the past two years, but have been many years in the making following a decade-long funding squeeze, and a workforce crisis that has been left unaddressed for far too long.”

The findings come as record numbers of people are waiting for hospital treatment, in England more than six million people are currently on a waiting list.

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Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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