The NHS is grappling with a critical challenge as hospital waiting lists in England have soared from 2.3 million in 2010 to 7.5 million, despite a slight improvement in waiting times for treatment. Critics, including Wes Streeting MP and journalists like Christopher Hope, have highlighted the impact of 14 years of Tory governance, particularly under Rishi Sunak, on the healthcare crisis, characterized by inaccessible care and lengthy delays for patients. Health Minister Maria Caulfield MP acknowledged efforts to reduce waiting lists, but the situation has prompted a broader debate on the need for comprehensive reform. Figures like Allison Pearson and Jim Bethell have called for addressing underlying health determinants, with experts suggesting a focus on sustainability and social determinants of health for a healthier future. The urgency of reform is underscored by reports of increased A&E wait times and the strain on mental health services, emphasizing the need for a strategic overhaul of the NHS.
#covid19, climate change, cost-of-living, and conflict crises reflect political, structural, and policy choices that drive an overarching crisis of inequality. @rasanathan et al say they should prompt a shift to #HealthierSocieties https://t.co/K4dTUDfTdw
It's time to lift our heads from grim NHS stats and ask, what kind of country we have created that so many people live with so much disease? More money, doctors, and treatments won't make Britain healthy. We need a country that supports healthy living. #HealthNation 🇬🇧 https://t.co/wK24usCHk0
"Sustainability must be at the heart of the NHS as we look to the future, both to improve the health system today and to make it resilient to future shocks.” @DrRitaIssa #BMJNHSCommission https://t.co/MGWWAXptOL
The BMJ's editor in chief @KamranAbbasi was speaking today at the International Forum on Quality & Safety in Healthcare about The BMJ's Commission on the Future of the NHS. Read the series of articles here 👇 https://t.co/2JrgEO3Lkj #BMJNHSCommission @QualityForum #Quality2024 https://t.co/AnTPFSuC3i
More grim figures for London. A&E 12 hour waits up 11% in a month, in a sign that 'winter pressure' is now the norm. https://t.co/fr4uYOWBAp
Attaining good health requires more than healthcare, and improvements in the NHS alone are inadequate to address the health crisis—action is needed on social determinants of health, say @lu_hiam, @BobKlaber, @SoSowemimo, & @MichaelMarmot #BMJNHSCommission https://t.co/P4Q2EGHk2d
New NHS England data has shown that despite a slight fall - waiting lists are still higher than they were when Rishi Sunak promised to bring them down in January 2023 Another epic failure #GeneralElectionN0W https://t.co/WG7GVgVQnJ
The number of Londoners waiting more than 12 hours in A&E has jumped by 11 per cent in a month, raising fears that the capital’s annual NHS winter crisis could become permanent https://t.co/wUw9vBrrdS
“Health is deteriorating from the cradle to the grave.” The latest paper in our BMJ Commission on the Future of the NHS, by @MichaelMarmot et al @bmj_latest. NHS and the whole of society must act on social determinants of health for a healthier future https://t.co/f12ZECXvnC
Patients forced to queue for over an hour outside south London GP after struggling to get appointments over the phone https://t.co/VsUKhBkNKd
Latest health & benefits stats are sobering. Britain is sick and fed up. No point scapegoating NHS. We must address underlying causes of booming disease burden. 💨 Dirty air 🍔 Junk food 💩 Internet filth ☠️ Toxic workplaces 🦠 Mouldy homes 🚬 Killer fags #HealthyBritain 🇬🇧 https://t.co/5Mr2zyNvEO
We must act on the social determinants of health and place sustainability at the core of the NHS’s future to ensure a healthy society, argue experts in two new reports from The BMJ Commission on the Future of the NHS 🔗 https://t.co/zNX67FWmBq 🔗 https://t.co/Lm8Wem21Vl https://t.co/CFTwbwQBLC
It is not normal for a country to have a hospital waiting list over 8 million people. More likely over 10 million. No other country’s health service is in this dire situation. It’s a scandal. Yet Britons put up with it, unaware that they deserve so much better.
“There are millions more people in this country now than there were when the NHS decided how many GPs they would need to look after them.” Mike Graham blasts the NHS after dozens of patients were seen queuing “around the block” outside a south London GP surgery. @Iromg https://t.co/343X9OwSBN
New figures from the #NHS show that waiting times have fallen slightly for the 5th month in a row, but the figures still remain very high. https://t.co/Ix8GLOxVeP
Patients suffering a mental health crisis in England are twice as likely to wait more than 12 hours in A&E, ITV News can reveal. Leading experts say the situation is 'shameful,' ITV News Health Correspondent @BeccaBarry reports https://t.co/yEqnTT8gHq https://t.co/5Yp9Kyhrem
'We've opened up a number of avenues to get those waiting lists down. We would be even further ahead if it wasn't for the strikes.' Health Minister, Maria Caulfield MP, reacts as the number of people on NHS waiting lists falls for the fifth month in a row. https://t.co/4v2mhMv6Zg
Waiting times for NHS hospital treatment in England have improved slightly according to the latest performance figures, but experts are warning the NHS is stuck in a cycle of poor performance and the way figures are counted has affected the overall picture https://t.co/9FX4AvwjHz
Patients suffering a mental health crisis in England are twice as likely to wait more than 12 hours in A&E, ITV News can reveal. ITV News Health Correspondent @BeccaBarry and Health and Science Producer @PhilipSimeITV report https://t.co/yEqnTT8gHq
Today’s benefits data is clear evidence millions of 🇬🇧 workforce are too ill and fed up to lead productive lives. This bona fide health crisis is an economic disaster. It’s not just a NHS problem. We need a whole-nation solution. 1/2 #HealthyNation https://t.co/L4ZGfgsmdm https://t.co/9TQ2MbeZ9g
New NHS waiting list figures have been released. Patients were waiting for almost 7.54mn appointments in February. The Tories have missed their own targets, again. We need to rebuild the capacity of the NHS to deliver for patients, through greater funding and in-sourcing.
‘I don’t know why Rishi Sunak is doing a victory lap! Waiting lists are higher than when he became Prime Minister.’ Wes Streeting MP says the longer the Conservative Party are in power, the longer patients under the NHS will be waiting to be seen. https://t.co/HeWk5uv8R0
Sickness benefits claims have risen by a third in Tory heartlands. Is Britain turning into a 'workshy' nation? 📞0344 499 1000 @TVKev | @ThatAlexWoman https://t.co/NTeSkPSDzE
Wes Streeting tells @GBNews @christopherhope if he could clear the NHS backlog using 100% private sector capacity, he would.
‘These figures mask people in real pain…millions of people are still waiting for treatment.’ GB News’ Christopher Hope reacts to waiting list figures for routine hospital appointments falling for the fifth month. https://t.co/QLA4NVSmPS
Really dismal numbers for the Tories and Rishi Sunak. 2.3 million Brits were on hospital waiting lists in 2010. Now 7.5 million! https://t.co/Q6PzjOsjDI
NHS waiting lists fall in England but still miss key targets https://t.co/HjL4DODF8F
Hundreds of people in Putney have joined me in calling on the Government to support our GPs. 14 years of Tory failure has left us with a broken NHS. We have endless waiting lists and inaccessible care. This cannot go on. https://t.co/ODBhrl0Vzo