Public satisfaction with the NHS has hit a new low, according to the long-running British Social Attitudes survey.
Just 21% said they were satisfied with the NHS in 2024, with waiting times and staff shortages the biggest concerns.
Satisfaction rates have dropped sharply since the pandemic – in 2019, 60% were satisfied – with NHS leaders warning the findings should act as wake-up call for the health service.
The poll – the gold-standard measure of the public’s view of the health service – has been running since 1983.
Nearly 3,000 people from England, Wales and Scotland were asked for their views last autumn.
There have been particularly sharp falls in satisfaction with three core services:
- 19% satisfied with A&E, compared to 54% in 2019
- 20% satisfied with dentistry, compared to 60% in 2019
- 31% satisfied with GP services, compared to 68% in 2019
The public in Wales were the most dissatisfied with the NHS.
Satisfaction with social care, which covers care homes and help in the home, was lower still, with just 13% saying they were satisfied – the same as last year.
‘Horrific ordeal’
James Cullinane, 41, from Luton, is someone who has become frustrated with the state of GP care.
He said he struggles to get an appointment when he needs one for himself or his children – his 11-year-old son suffers with allergies.
“They constantly tell you to phone back every morning at 8am to see if there’s appointments available – and there generally never are.”
He said he has resorted to visiting local walk-in centres or phoning NHS 111.
“I can understand people’s opinion of the NHS dropping,” he added.
Susan Quenby told the BBC about what she described as a “horrific” ordeal after being taken to hospital with what turned out to be sepsis.
The 68-year-old from York went to A&E because of wounds that had been gradually getting worse and spent 17 hours in A&E before being taken to a ward.
“I waited in A&E with oozing weeping open sores on both shins. I had to ask a nurse in A&E for somewhere to lie down as I felt so terribly ill with chills and a fever.
“Once in a bed, it was confirmed I had sepsis with a very high infection rate. I spent eight days in hospital on an antibiotic drip.
“While I was there my bed sheets were changed just once in a week. My legs wouldn’t stop oozing so the sheets were filthy. I was worried about picking up another infection.”
‘Sobering reminder’
The survey, which was carried out before last year’s Budget when the government announced a rise in funding, also found more than two thirds did not think enough was spent on the NHS.
But the public is also concerned about waste – with just 14% saying the NHS spends the money it has efficiently.
Bea Taylor, from the Nuffield Trust think-tank, which has published the findings along with the King’s Fund, said: “Just five years after the British public were called on to ‘Protect the NHS’ at the start of the pandemic, these findings reveal just how dismayed they are about the state of the NHS.
“The government says the NHS is broken – and the public agree. But support for the core principles of the NHS – free at the point of use, available to all and funded by taxation – endures despite the collapse in satisfaction.”
Louise Ansari, of the patient watchdog Healthwatch England, said the survey was a “sobering reminder” of the state of the NHS.
“Although many people tell us that they are grateful for the hard work of NHS staff, long waiting times and access issues across the health system have taken their toll on people’s confidence in getting timely care in the first place.”
And Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents health managers, said: “These figures must be a wake-up call for the NHS.
“It’s clear radical action is needed across the board to restore the public’s faith in the NHS.”
England’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “We inherited a broken NHS and this survey shows patients agree.”
He said since the survey was carried out extra money had been invested and improvements were starting to be seen, but it would take time.
He said the forthcoming 10-year plan for the NHS, which is expected in the summer, would once again make the NHS the “envy of the world”.