Waiting times for surgery and a perceived lack of choice are still key concerns for the public in the UK, research reveals.
An international survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit shows that only 18% of UK respondents expressed satisfaction on waiting times for surgery versus 30% in the US.
The report, called Health reform: the debate goes public, also reveals that a larger proportion of UK respondents felt they have little or no influence over where and how they are treated, compared with respondents from Germany, America and India.
Despite the UK’s Patient Choice initiative, six in ten respondents say they are not encouraged to choose from a range of doctors or hospitals for their treatment, even though three quarters would like the option to do so. In the US, by contrast, seven in ten respondents feel that choice is encouraged.
Few agree with the government’s use of the private sector to improve NHS healthcare delivery - less than a quarter think it will help.
One quarter of UK respondents said they would be willing to pay to reduce waiting times, a far higher proportion than in other countries. Although they are less keen than people elsewhere on the idea of paying fees at the point of provision or to insurers. A higher proportion of UK respondents would be willing to pay higher taxes for improved healthcare than would German or American respondents.
British people are also more satisfied with the quality of their physicians, the report says.
Commenting on the report, a spokesman for the BMA said: “As well as confirming the high level of confidence people in the UK have in their doctors, this is further evidence of their lack of appetite for private provision of healthcare. It’s clear that they place a huge value on their publicly funded, publicly provided NHS - to the point where many would be willing to pay higher taxes to protect it.
“Politicians need to listen to their constituents and reject the tired dogma that the only way to achieve quality in the NHS is by exposing it to more competition.”
The BMA is currently running the Look After Our NHS campaign, which is seeking to significantly reduce commercial involvement in the NHS.
Iain Scott, the report’s author, said: “For many governments the financial outlook has worsened considerably, while the window for reform is getting narrower. This report finds that for healthcare reforms to be effective and receive the public support they need, policymakers must strike a bargain and do it soon.”
The study was based on a survey of 1,575 citizens from the UK, US, Germany and India, including 360 respondents from the UK.
Read the full report.
Tags: Patient choice, Privatisation
