The majority of people are not confident of receiving high-quality care this winter
(Picture: PA Wire)More than half of adults in Britain doubt people will be able to get high quality health care in their area this winter as the NHS struggles with strikes, waiting lists of more than seven million and pressures from Covid and flu, a poll revealed today.
The Ipsos survey for the Standard showed 54 per cent are not very or not at all confident that this level of care will be available, more than three times as high as when the question was asked in January 2015 when the figure was 16 per cent. Some 44 per cent are fairly confident or very confident of this high quality care but it was 72 per cent eight years ago.
However, people appear more confident about the treatment that they or their family would get generally. Six in 10 are very or fairly confident that they or their family would get good care, though this was also down from 83 per cent in 2015.
The poll also found that:
- Nine in 10 people say waiting times for non-emergency treatment and care are too long.
- 84 per cent think waiting times for emergency treatment and care are too long.
- Some 47 per cent say Labour is the best party to improve the NHS, compared to 11 per cent for the Tories.
Gideon Skinner, head of political research at Ipsos, said: “With focus on the challenges facing the health service only likely to continue over the cold months, this could be a crucial political battleground.”
On who or what is to blame for long waiting times, 39 per cent said a lack of doctors and nurses, or NHS staff being overworked, under-trained and under-paid. A third cited underfunding, cuts or “not enough money”. A quarter blamed the Conservatives, 17 per cent the Covid pandemic and 15 per cent NHS managers and management. Nine per cent mentioned the NHS system, NHS inefficiencies or wastes of money. Just two per cent of people blamed the strikes.
