Record NHS investment will ensure it makes it to a century, minister says

Outdated buildings and shortages of nurses and equipment remain an issue, 75 years on

NHS staff nurses on a hospital ward. PA

Record investment will ensure the NHS makes it to a century, the Health Minister said on Wednesday, despite polling finding that one third of British users cannot find appropriate treatment on its 75th anniversary.

Leading health think tanks have called for more investment in the health service, which marks its 75th anniversary on Wednesday, while former health secretary Sajid Javid has called for a royal commission to provide a “dispassionate and honest” assessment of how it can be reformed.

Maria Caulfield, the minster, dismissed the concerns, saying the health service is seeing its highest ever levels of funding, which will ensure it is “thriving” in 25 years' time.

“I've seen tremendous change and I think, through my lifetime of working in the NHS, people have always been very sceptical about its future,” the nurse, who has worked in the NHS for more than 30 years, told Times Radio on Wednesday.

“They've always said a Conservative government won't protect the NHS and yet we've been in government for 48 years of those 75.

“We're now seeing record levels of investment into staff and into our infrastructure with our new surgical hubs, community diagnostic centres, new hospitals, but also the way we treat people as well.”

In a poll for the anniversary 34 per cent said they struggled to get the healthcare services they needed through the NHS, rising to 51 per cent among those with “life-limiting” health conditions.

The poll, conducted by YouGov on behalf of the IPPR think tank, found that 17 per cent said they had paid for private health care since 2020.

In response to Mr Javid's call, Ms Caulfield said a royal commission would take an “awful long time”.

“We are investing now and building a workforce for the future, so I'm very confident that in 25 years' time the NHS will be thriving,” she said.

Challenges

As many celebrated the arrival of the new National Health Service with flags, village dances and even a carnival, one official took a somewhat sombre tone to its launch in 1948.

“No miracle will happen when the new health services start on July 5,” John Edwards, parliamentary secretary to the Ministry of Health, said that year.

“There are many out-of-date buildings and shortages in equipment and staff, and there will be 60,000 beds which it will be impossible to use because there are not enough nurses.

“But the fact that perfection cannot be attained at once is no reason for delaying the new service, the nature of which will depend very much on the people who work in it.”

These are some of these challenges that still face the NHS, 75 years on.

‘Out-of-date buildings’

According to NHS Digital, the “maintenance backlog” for the NHS in England alone is £10.2 billion ($12.97 billion).

This is how much it would cost to restore buildings to certain standards and covers problems ranging from leaky gutters to faulty lifts.

“Much of the NHS estate is in a bad way, so much so that in some cases bulldozing and rebuilding is the only feasible option,” NHS Providers warned in 2022.

“Without proper investment, leaking roofs, broken boilers and outdated technology don’t get fixed or replaced, with damaging knock-on effects on the quality of care and patients’ safety.

“The maintenance backlog is a huge problem right across the NHS.”

One NHS leader said: “We operate 21st century health care from 19th century buildings – increasingly unsustainable.”

‘Shortages in equipment and staff’

Mr Edwards would have been referring to tourniquets and stethoscope shortages as the NHS came to being.

But the health service still sometimes faces its own equipment shortages today.

In recent days, the NHS Supply Chain issued alerts for certain branded products, from biopsy needles to feeding tubes to surgical scrubs.

A recent article by the Health Service Journal warned of long-running supply issues with blood-collection equipment.

Meanwhile, in recent months there have been shortages of vital medicine to treat menopause symptoms and a certain type of antibiotic.

On staff shortages, there are 112,000 vacancies across the NHS in England alone.

‘Not enough nurses’

When the NHS was launched, there was a call for 30,000 more nurses.

To try to recruit nurses, a publicity van toured northern England, handing out application forms and showing off the latest medical gadgets.

Now the number of nurses registered to work in the UK has reached its highest ever level. Almost 1.2 per cent of the entire population is now employed as a nurse, midwife or nursing associate.

But there are still 40,096 nursing vacancies across the NHS in England.

The Long Term Workforce Plan was issued last week and sets out how the government intends to boost the workforce – including 170,000 more nurses by 2037, when the NHS celebrates its 89th anniversary.

Nurses and ambulance workers on strike in Britain – in pictures

Two tier health care

The anniversary of the health service comes at a time when a survey found that one in three British adults have found it difficult to get access to NHS services since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The main reason for choosing to go private was to avoid long waiting lists, the IPPR said.

It raised concerns that a “two-tier” health system is developing, where people who can afford it get timely health care while those who are unable to pay are forced to wait.

The survey of 2,014 British adults, including 543 with a health condition that affects their ability to carry out day-to-day activities, found that overall 45 per cent support increased taxes to pay for at least the current level of care and services.

“We should celebrate the NHS on its anniversary,” said Chris Thomas, head of the IPPR’s commission on health and prosperity.

“Since its founding year, it has treated millions and earned its position as the jewel of the crown in the British welfare state.

“But we must also acknowledge that it is rather worse for wear.

“After a decade of austerity, a global pandemic and historic winter crises, too many people are struggling to access the care they need. This is costing people their lives and their livelihoods.”

An NHS representative said: “This research is based on people’s experience over the last three years including during the pandemic when services were severely disrupted across the world.

“It also fails to acknowledge that the NHS is now delivering an extra 40 million GP appointments, 1.5 million more diagnostic tests and 610,000 more cancer checks a year compared to pre-pandemic – all while making significant progress on recovery, with two-year waits virtually eliminated and those waiting longer than 18 months reduced by 90 per cent.

“Research shows the use of private health insurance has actually fallen over the last decade.

“And while a proportion of people will always choose to access private care, what this report does recognise is that the public still overwhelmingly back the NHS’s founding principles of being free for patients at the point of delivery.”

This year a major public opinion poll showed that public satisfaction with the NHS dropped to its lowest level.

But the 2022 British Social Attitudes survey, which was published in March, also suggests that the UK public is unabashedly proud of the service and what it stands for.