Responding to the latest performance figures for the NHS in England, Nuffield Trust Chief Executive Nigel Edwards said:
"Against a backdrop of long-term and severe pressures, the NHS is drawing on its deep inner strengths and the commitment of staff to tackle the Coronavirus crisis and save lives.
"The new figures show that total A&E attendances dropped by over a fifth in March compared to February – this could be down to responsible decisions by many thousands of patients to stay away where possible. However, we know that senior clinicians are seriously worried that some patients who really need urgent treatment may also have been deterred from attending, which could result in delayed diagnoses and poorer outcomes over time.
"Ambulance response times also worsened in March, which may be a Covid-related pressure that has so far received less attention than intensive treatment unit capacity.
"On planned treatment the latest figures (February) also show that, even before the Coronavirus crisis, patients were waiting longer – pointing to the mountainous backlog that will need to be tackled when elective work restarts."
Notes to editors
- NHS England’s monthly performance figures can be found here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/combined-performance-summary/
- Charts on data released today on average daily attendance A&E rates for February and March, ambulance response times and elective waiting times can be found at https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/news-item/combined-performance-summary-february-march-2020
- The Nuffield Trust is an independent health think tank. We aim to improve the quality of health care in the UK by providing evidence-based research and policy analysis and informing and generating debate.
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Fiona Johnson on 07825 510527 or Fiona.johnson@nuffieldtrust.org.uk, or Meilir Jones on 07795410433 or Meilir.jones@nuffieldtrust.org.uk