The NHS, how does it work?

The key ideas behind the NHS

The idea of the NHS is to give the whole population access to comprehensive treatment whenever they need it, free at the point of use, so that when you are ill you don’t have to worry about paying a bill. When and how you receive treatment depends upon your clinical needs, not your ability to pay, as the cost is shared through the tax system. Many other countries offer a comprehensive range of healthcare but none have such low charges making it amongst the most accessible and fairest in the world. Through the NHS the risk of ill health is shared across the whole community not borne by the individual. Gordon Brown once called it “the best insurance policy in the world”. Standard insurance policies always have conditions for paying out, whereas the NHS provides comprehensive care to us all with very few conditions.

12th July 2023

Charity letter on state of NHS
In a letter to political leaders, the Kings Fund, the Health Foundation and the Nuffield Trust tell politicians "The NHS has endured a decade of under-investment compared to the historic average, and capital spending has been well below comparable countries. As a result, the health service has insufficient resources to do its job." Will they listen?

Save the NHS, listen to patients & doctors
Following a hospital consultant's plan to save the NHS, Dr Angus Whitfield says the system is breaking due to chronic underinvestment . It's underinvestment that is at the crux of crises like that being played out in midwifery right now. Pointing fingers at hospital trusts in CQC reports doesn't identify the underlying causes - cuts in training, the staffing crisis and falling staff wages.

Austerity lead to declining NHS care
The coalition government’s austerity programme in the early 2010s led to the heath service no longer being able to meet key waiting time targets, the Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation said.

Employing physician assistants led to patient's death
A GP practice in North London has made the decision to stop employing physician associates after an incident of ‘poor quality’ care contributed to the death of a patient.

Integrated Care's undeliverable financial targets
NHS trusts have committed to financial plans for 2023-34 without properly considering their consequences with finance directors turning a blind eye to unrealistic forecasts under pressure from NHS England.