People understand need for change in Welsh NHS

As we are continually reminded by politicians...we are in a heap of trouble and it may get worse in 2013. So I suppose things have to change to make the most of the limited resources available, and as such the changes in the NHS need to be taken in that context. However, a recent survey showed that the public would be concerned if any changes affected the quality of care.

A survey by YouGov of more than 1,000 Welsh adults between 16 and 21 November 2012, commissioned by the Welsh NHS Confederation found:

• 65% of people named “lack of funding” as the biggest challenge facing the NHS in Wales, compared with 46% last year.
• Almost half (48%) are aware that the NHS needs to make changes to the way health services are organised to make best use of scarce financial resources.
• There is growing awareness of the challenges posed by caring for an elderly population (up to 53% from 43% last year), and also an unhealthy population (up to 41% from 34%).
• The Welsh public also appear to understand the need to make changes to improve standards of care. 22% named it as one of their top three reasons for why they think Health Boards in Wales are planning to change the way services are delivered. 32% of people were aware that the quality of NHS care varies from place to place and changes are needed to make all services of an equal standard, while 28% of people were aware that the standards of care provided on weekends is not as good as weekdays.
• The quality of care was given as the top answer for what people would prioritise when it comes to hospital care. 59% named it as one their three main considerations, while only 14% named travelling distance.
• Even though most people (59%) feel that their local hospital should be able to provide every type of health service for their local community, 79% of people said they would be prepared to travel further, for example by an extra hour, to see a specialist, while 45% said they would be prepared to travel further for higher quality care.
• Opinion is fairly evenly split on whether establishing specialist centres for certain types of services is a good idea, with 33% of people saying it would make services better, compared to 19% who thought it would make services worse. 24% people said it would make no difference.

See YouGov: Survey finds growing public awareness of why the NHS must change