Public satisfaction with the NHS and general practice has crashed to its lowest ever level across the UK, according to a major analysis published today.

Just 29% of people say there are satisfied with the service – and 51% say they are dissatisfied, according to the British Social Attitudes survey, with long waiting times for appointments a key underlying factor. The finding reflects a seven percentage point reduction in satisfaction levels. Some 69% said long waiting times for practice and hospital appointments were among their top reasons for unhappiness with the service.
Just 35% said they were satisfied with GP services, a reduction from 38% in 2021. The survey is undertaken in England, Scotland and Wales.

Nuffield Trust researcher Jessica Morris, who analysed the findings, said: “Behind the political upheaval and turmoil playing out at the time of this survey, the British public was sending a message about the worsening situation for the NHS. The fact we have now recorded the lowest level of satisfaction with the NHS in the 40-year history of this gold standard survey is a warning siren.”

British Medical Association chair Professor Philip Banfield said: “The NHS was one of the most respected health services in the world, but these damning findings show how years of underfunding and Government neglect have reduced it to a mere shadow of what it could, and should, be. This survey makes one thing clear: patients who use the NHS can see the damage caused by that lack of investment and absence of workforce planning, uniting the public with healthcare staff who have been shouting loudly about these pressures for many years.”

Royal College of GPs chair Professor Kamila Hawthorne said: “The report shows three key reasons for dissatisfaction with the NHS are long waiting times, staff shortages, and that the Government does not spend enough on the NHS. These are all serious concerns affecting the general practice workforce, as well, and we would urge decision makers to listen to the public and address them.

“We share our patients’ frustrations – highlighted in this report – when they struggle to access our services, and most understand that we are trying our best to deliver safe, timely and appropriate care, whilst working under intense workload and workforce pressures. We know from the last GP patient survey, that once patients secure an appointment, the vast majority are satisfied with the care they receive. The crisis in general practice is not the fault of dedicated GPs, it is a result of decades of underfunding and poor workforce planning. But it is not too late to turn this dire situation around.”

A spokesperson for NHS England said the majority of the population still “very firmly” value the fundamental principles of the service.

The spokesperson said: “Importantly, even with more people accessing our services than ever before, it also shows strong satisfaction with the range of services and the quality of care patients receive, which is a testament to our hardworking, dedicated staff working across all corners of the NHS. However, there is no doubt that the NHS has been under sustained pressure in recent months which has impacted the experiences of patients – at the time this survey was carried out, staff had just treated more people with COVID-19 in hospital over the summer than the past two combined, GPs were delivering millions more appointments each month compared to before the pandemic, and it was the busiest October ever for A&E attendances and the most serious ambulance call-outs.

“The NHS is taking significant steps to further improve patient experience, including our recently launched blueprint to recover urgent and emergency care alongside continuing to slash the long waits for elective treatment which inevitably built up during the pandemic, and we are working on new plans to boost primary care for patients as well as publishing a long-term workforce strategy shortly.”