The King's Fund responds to the latest monthly NHS performance data

Responding to the latest monthly NHS performance data, Danielle Jefferies, Senior Analyst at The King’s Fund, said:

‘These figures show an NHS that has passed the worst of winter when hospitalisations from flu were at their peak and people were waiting more than two days in A&E. However, while spring is dawning, today’s figures show that challenges accessing hospital care remain, with 94% hospital beds occupied, 61% people waiting under four hours in A&E when the target is 95%, and the average ambulance response time to life-threatening conditions such as strokes and heart attacks more than 28 minutes (against a target of 18 minutes). The silver lining to these otherwise gloomy numbers is that for the 6th month in a row, the overall size of the waiting list for planned care fell, now standing at 7.4 million, down from 7.6 million in August last year, and there have been improvements to performance in cancer care.

‘These statistics show an NHS under pressure all year round, and the public are well aware of it. Analysis published this month by The King’s Fund and the Nuffield Trust shows that satisfaction with the NHS is at an all-time low. In particular, public satisfaction with A&E services fell dramatically to just 19%. The public are anxious about their ability to access essential services when they need them most.

'Any direct improvements to hospital services will need to come hand in hand with the broader reforms needed to create a truly sustainable health service. Reforming social care, preventing ill health and bolstering community services outside hospitals will all be crucial to ‘fixing’ the health and care system and reversing the staggering collapse in public satisfaction with the NHS.’