Briefing: how confident are people about NHS healthcare

Our new survey asked 2,507 adults living in England to rate their confidence in timely access to 13 NHS services, including A&E, ambulances, non-urgent operations and procedures, GPs, pharmacists, mental health services and dentists. 

Across those services, the survey suggests low public confidence in accessing GP services and preventative care, such as mental health support and non-urgent procedures, while a relatively high confidence in more urgent care, such as A&E and 999 services.   

 Key findings show:   

• Out of hours GP services scored the lowest public confidence, with half of people, 50%, lacking confidence in getting timely care from this service
• This is closely followed by non-urgent operations and procedures, 46%;  
• Mental health support, 44%
• GP services during the day,42%; and dental care, 39%
• Nearly a third of people were not confident in being able to access A&E, 31%, or an ambulance or paramedic, 30%. 

The briefing outlines calls to for NHS leaders to improve public confidence that the NHS is there for them this winter, including: 

1. Develop patient experience measures, which track expectations, confidence, and experiences. 
2. Draw up a national plan to hire more non-clinical NHS staff to support patients with information about their care and ensure they don’t feel forgotten while waiting to access services. 
3. Provide more support to those on long NHS waiting lists, including regular updates and relevant pain relief, mental health support, or access to physiotherapy.