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How has Covid-19 shaped experiences and views of health and care?

We have been working with opinion research experts Britain Thinks since 2014 to understand what people have been experiencing, thinking and feeling in the health and care landscape. Now, as the second wave of Covid-19 takes hold, we are publishing the latest output from this collaboration: the first report from a series running into 2021 to understand the impact Covid-19 has had on people with significant health needs, the wider public and frontline professionals. 

It makes sobering reading. As this report reminds us, before the NHS Long Term Plan was written people were already developing a sense that the NHS and social care were reaching a point of crisis. While it's too early to draw final conclusions, this new report suggests that 2021, the year in which new NHS legislation is expected, may see very significant levels of concern for the future from people and professionals alike, unless funding and staffing pressures are tackled visibly and the plan is put firmly back on track.

This report also shares insights into how the changes to service delivery during the pandemic have gone down, and what might or might not stick.

There are hard messages in this report but one thing shines out: the gratitude and admiration people contiune to have for the way health and care staff have persisted selflessly in their efforts to provide professional support to people who desperately need it.

Image shows table from report, covering similarities and differences in views between public, patients and healthcare professionals.
Britain Thinks
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Publish date: 
Friday, November 6, 2020