10.09.14
Only 5% of healthcare professionals think NHS reforms were ‘positive’
Only 5% of healthcare professionals think the recent NHS reforms have had a positive impact, a new study has found.
In July, Dods surveyed 3,628 health staff via an online questionnaire on their experiences of the reforms, the organisations driving change, and their expectations for the next 12 months.
The survey also found that only 2% believe their organisation has sufficient financial resources to support itself.
However despite the financial worries reported by NHS staff, the survey found that efforts to foster more joined-up services and collaboration are working well in some areas, with 52% of respondents saying that CCGs are “driving change a lot”, with NHS England, the Care Quality Commission and parliamentarians following behind.
David Bowers, senior research manager at Dods, said: “The survey shows a clear tension within the health service surrounding the need to make efficiency savings, while at the same time maintaining and improving standards of care. This is very much an issue in the minds of health professionals whose commitment to patient care remains steadfast.”
Commenting on the survey a Department of Health spokesperson said: "Our bureaucracy-busting reforms to the NHS are saving over £1bn a year and have put budgets and power in the hands of local doctors and nurses — those who know best what local patients need. By taking tough decisions to increase the budget by £12.7 bn over this Parliament, we've been able to hire 6,300 extra nurses and 6,500 extra doctors since 2010.”