Public satisfaction with the NHS is at the lowest level ever recorded – another unfortunate finding from the British Social Attitudes survey published by The King’s Fund and Nuffield Trust this week.
Less than a quarter of people are satisfied with the NHS, the survey found. And since 2020, satisfaction has fallen by 29 percentage points. More than half of respondents said they are dissatisfied with the NHS.
Senior fellow at The King’s Fund Dan Wellings has called these results ‘depressing but sadly not surprising’.
He warned: Ahead of the upcoming general election, political leaders should take note of just how far satisfaction with this celebrated public institution has fallen.’
Of those who were dissatisfied, 71% blamed long wait times for GP and hospital appointments. This was followed by staff shortages (54%) and the belief that the government does not spend enough on the NHS (47%). While 84% of all respondents agreed the NHS has a major or severe funding problem.
In addition, nearly half of respondents said they would support a tax increase in order to spend more on the health service.
Fellow at The Nuffield Trust Jessica Morris said: ‘Despite such low levels of satisfaction, the public continue to back the principles underpinning the NHS. The public has not fallen out of love with the idea of a publicly funded, free at the point of use NHS, but they are losing confidence that it will support them and their loved ones in the best possible way when they need it.’
More than 3300 people across England, Scotland and Wales took part in the survey last autumn.
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