More people reporting a better overall hospital experience than last year, but patient satisfaction still far lower than five years ago
The following is a press release from the Care Quality Commission
The 2024 adult inpatient survey captures the views and experience of more than 62,000 people who stayed in one of 131 acute and specialist NHS trusts in England for at least one night during November* last year. It has been carried out annually since 2002.
The survey asked people to give their opinions on the care they received, including quality of information and communication with staff, whether they were given enough privacy, the amount of support given to help them eat and drink, and on their discharge arrangements.
The majority of respondents were positive about their interactions with doctors and nurses - as has been the case in previous years. A high proportion of people surveyed (80.1%) said they ‘always’ had confidence and trust in the doctors treating them (80.2% in 2023) and more than four fifths (82%) felt they were ‘always’ treated with dignity and respect (unchanged from 2023).
Most respondents felt that they were able to talk to hospital staff about their worries and fears to some extent (60.4% ‘always’, and 30% ‘sometimes’) and over a third (36.8%) of respondents said that staff involved them ‘a great deal’ in decisions about their care and treatment – up from 34.7% who said this in 2023.
The proportion who felt that there were ‘always’ enough nurses on duty has also increased – from 55.7% in 2023 to 57.9% in 2024. And most people surveyed in 2024 said that they were able to get a member of staff to help them when they needed attention – either ‘always’ (64.5%) or ‘sometimes’ (33.1%). This compares to 63.1% who said they could ‘always’ get help and 34.2% who said they could ‘sometimes’ get help in the 2023 survey.
However, despite indications of improvement since 2023, the 2024 survey results show several areas where people’s inpatient experience fell short of expectations, and the long-term trend reveals that satisfaction levels have fallen over time for many questions where a year-on-year comparison is available.
In 2024, two in five respondents who were in hospital for elective care said they would have liked to have been admitted either ‘a lot sooner’ (19.9%) or a ‘bit sooner’ (22.2%). And around four in 10 (43%) said their health deteriorated while waiting to be admitted, with 25.5% saying it got ‘a bit worse’ and 17.7% who said their health got ‘much worse’ (no comparable data available).
The proportion of people who felt that they waited ‘a bit too long’ (15.4%) or ‘far too long’ (17.8%) to get a bed after arriving at hospital has changed little since 2023 (15.1% and 17.8%, respectively). However, results for this question over time show a downward trend since 2020 when 12.2% said they waited ‘a bit too long’ and only 7.9% ‘far too long’.
A quarter (25.5%) of all patients surveyed (elective and emergency) who had to wait to be admitted onto a ward did so for 6 hours or more, with 17.5% of patients waiting for 12 hours or more, and 9.8% waiting for more than 24 hours (no comparable data available).
Of those who said they had to wait for a bed on a ward, 45.6% waited in a treatment bay, 30.8% in a waiting room, and 18% in a corridor or hallway. And for respondents that said they had to change wards during the night, only a fifth (20%) were given a clear and understandable explanation for the reason.
More than three quarters (77.8%) of people surveyed did say they received the right amount of information about their condition or treatment while in hospital (compared to 77.5% in 2023). However, responses to questions about information and support provided at discharge were less positive.
One in 5 (19.9%) respondents said that hospital staff did not discuss whether they would need any additional equipment or changes to their home after leaving the hospital but would have liked them to. Furthermore, less than a half (47.5%) of respondents felt they ‘definitely’ got enough support from health or social care services to help them manage their condition after leaving hospital, and 23.1% said they did not receive enough support.
Responses to the 2024 survey show that people with a disability and those who were considered frail reported poorer than average experiences for all questions analysed. Worse than average experiences were also described by respondents who had been admitted as an emergency, those who had dementia, Alzheimer’s disease or another long-term condition for most questions analysed.
As well as a report of the national findings, CQC has published the results for each of the 131 individual trusts that took part, and a report identifying those trusts that have scored better or worse across the survey overall, so that people can see how their local services performed.
Dr Toli Onon, CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals, said:
“Despite the pressures facing the NHS, most people surveyed continue to report positively about their interactions with hospital staff. That feedback is a testament to the efforts of frontline healthcare professionals working tirelessly to provide high quality care to those that need it. Results relating to the availability of staff and people receiving help when they needed it, show encouraging improvements since 2023 and that is great to see.
“However, the lack of progress in areas such as discharge arrangements and in people feeling they received enough information - particularly when leaving hospital - is disappointing. There are also some worrying reports of lengthy waits and the proportion of people whose health deteriorated while waiting for elective care is a real concern. Equally, waits to be transferred to a ward when in hospital are an issue. Patients should receive safe and effective care in an environment that allows for their privacy and dignity to be protected. ‘Corridor care’ must not become normalised - however, these survey results demonstrate that in some cases the short-term use of temporary escalation spaces to relieve pressure on the ambulance sector is a regrettable reality. Hospitals must have in place the processes and culture to ensure that patients receive the care and attention they need in every environment.
“We know that trusts are working incredibly hard to see people as quickly as possible and to manage the flow of patients from admission through to discharge, in order to maximise capacity for care provision. The latest NHS Performance figures indicate an improvement against the 18-week target – but overall, waiting lists remain stubbornly high. As pressures continue to mount heading into winter, ensuring safety, effectiveness of care and the best possible experience throughout the entirety of the patient journey must be a priority for all parts of the health and care system.”
The survey findings have been shared with each participating trust so that they can review their individual results and take steps to address any areas where there may be changes within their power to drive further improvement. CQC will continue to use the findings as part of its wider monitoring of the quality of hospital services and to plan and target its inspections.
