Figures released by the British Social Attitudes Survey at the end of March show the highest satisfaction with the NHS since records began in 1983. Satisfaction levels have reached 65% while dissatisfaction levels have dropped to 15%. This gap indicates the largest public support for the healthcare provider on record.
These figures rankle with the continued political debate on whether the coalition government turned around the NHS or drove it into the ground. Support for the former view also came out recently from Imperial College, London, one of the world's leading medical research universities, saying that Jeremy Hunt's new hospital inspection system is saving 450 lives a year. Furthermore many people have noticed the increase in frontline staff and decrease in bureaucracy. Since 2010 the NHS has taken on 8,100 more doctors and 8,700 more nurses, while getting rid of 18,000 back office staff. However issues about space, funding and A&E waiting times still plague the institution.
Former MP and current Conservative candidate for Wyre Forest, Mark Garnier, gave his view on the matter:
"These figures are very good news. They show that despite strains on the NHS the high level of care by staff, backed by national initiatives, are clearly reflected in patient experience. The high levels of satisfaction come not only from interactions with local GPs but also from those with complex long term conditions. The £1.16 billion Cancer Drugs Fund, set up in 2010, has meant that people can get the latest and most effective cancer treatments on the market. The figures also reflect that people recognise not only the seasonal strains on the NHS but also that the responses to them have been rapid.
Improvements continue to be made and experiences built on. On the 31st of March we saw the launch of a new set of guidelines for nursing and care, voted through Parliament last year. In the Autumn, Well Connected Worcestershire is set to link social care and primary healthcare, as part of the national Better Care Fund. Evidence of the success of a joined-up connected can be seen locally in the super-partnership merger of 5 GPs' surgeries.
I hope that confidence continues to rise in the NHS as current measures prove to be working for people in Wyre Forest and nationally."