Patient care deteriorating as NHS heads into winter on a knife edge

Patient care deteriorating as NHS heads into winter on a knife edge Half (51 per cent) of NHS trust finance directors think patient care in their area has got worse over the last year, while just six per cent said it has improved, according to The King’s Fund’s new quarterly monitoring report.

As the Chancellor prepares to announce the Budget later this month, the findings show that a seven-year squeeze on NHS and social care budgets is taking a significant toll on patient care. Analysis for the report suggests that the NHS is heading into winter on a knife edge with performance worse than at this time last year against a number of key indicators.