People in Wales have less confidence in the NHS than in England, poll finds
Wales online article by David Deans, 29 JUNE 2015

The YouGov poll also said that more people in Wales think the NHS is going to get worse than in England.

People in Wales have less confidence in the NHS than across the border in England, a new survey has found.

The new Welsh Political Barometer Poll, which quizzed 1,151 people, comes at a difficult time for the NHS in Wales after heavy criticism from Westminster.
There is also less than a year to go until the next National Assembly election, which is likely to focus heavily on health services.

YouGov pollsters quizzed 1,151 people and found more than a third of people in Wales, 36%, either said they “did not trust the NHS very much” or “did not trust it at all”. In England, the equivalent figure is 21%.

‘A consistent pattern’
The majority of people in Wales, 61%, still say the trust the NHS “a fair amount” or “a great deal”, however that is below England’s 74%.

Professor Roger Scully, of Cardiff University’s Wales Governance Centre, said that the result seemed to be “symptomatic of a consistent pattern in public attitudes”.

He referred to a poll done by Tory peer Lord Ashcroft last year, which found that the NHS was a bigger concern to people in Wales than in either Scotland or England, and that they rated their personal experience of the NHS less highly.

Related: The political battle over the NHS has left voters divided over whether Wales’ health service matches England’s

Conservative peer Lord AshcroftConservative peer Lord Ashcroft
Prof Scully added: “The positive news here is that the majority of people in Wales trust the NHS to provide a high quality service at least ‘a fair amount’.

“The less positive news is that ratings here are notably, if not massively, lower than in the parallel poll in England.

“Fewer people in Wales have positive levels of trust in the NHS, and greater numbers express distrust.”

The poll was carried out by YouGov for ITV Cymru Wales and Cardiff University.

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Welsh Govt: ‘People are incredibly positive about the Welsh NHS’
In response, the Welsh Government said that its own face-to-face survey of 14,000 people said the public was highly satisfied with the NHS.

A spokesman said: “It is vital people have confidence on their health service. We know that when people are asked about their actual experiences, and not just an abstract question, they are incredibly positive about the Welsh NHS.

“The latest National Survey for Wales, based on face-to-face interviews with 14,000 people show the public are highly satisfied with the NHS.

“The results show 91% of people were satisfied with the care they received from their GPs and 92% with the care they received at their last appointment at a NHS hospital.”

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The YouGov poll asked respondents if they think the standard of care in the NHS in Wales will get better or worse over the next few years, or will it stay much the same, and posed the same questions in a poll in England.

Some 12% in Wales said it would get better, compared to 13% in England. But 47% said it would get worse, compared to 37% in England.

Meanwhile 32% said it would stay much the same, compared to 41% in England. 10% of people in Wales said they didn’t know.

9%: ‘We don’t trust the NHS at all’
When asked whether the respondents trust the NHS in Wales to provide a high quality service, 27% said they do not trust it very much compared to 17% in England.

A total of 9% said they do not trust it at all, compared to 4% in England. However more than half said they trust the NHS a great deal or a fair amount in Wales – 12% and 49% for both questions respectively.

That compared to 17% and 57% in England.

Welsh Conservative Shadow Health Minister, Darren Millar, said: “Trust in the Welsh health service has understandably been rocked in recent years as Labour’s record-breaking budget cuts take their toll.

Trust in the Welsh health service has understandably been rocked in recent years as Labour’s record-breaking budget cuts take their toll… There is clear need for an urgent plan of action to invest in the frontline”.

ITV report: Poll: Public doubt future standard of NHS care

BBC report: Health service ‘trusted less in Wales than England’

BBC report: Fewer than half the population know who runs Welsh NHS, says poll

BBC report: Measuring devolution: The difficulties running the NHS

WAG: Patient satisfaction with NHS care continues to improve – Fundamentals of care audit

 

 

 

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