Hospital league tables will harm, not heal, the NHS | Letters

"Wes Streeting does not seem to understand the complexity of healthcare funding. League tables will exacerbate regional differences rather than abolish them (Norfolk hospital worst in country as NHS league tables reintroduced, 9 September). The problems are not unknown but, sadly for this government, will not be solved in the next four years. It should not be a surprise, especially for Mr Streeting, that the NHS cannot function efficiently until social care is fixed."

"There is a massive shortage of staff in all specialities, which take 10 to 15 years to get from university to skilled professional. This leads to a reliance on locum and agency staff. The hospitals at the bottom of the tables will have the highest usage of them, reducing quality of care at a higher cost. Increasing the use of private clinics simply loses staff from the NHS."

"Within the past year, I've had a mental health admission involving a transfer of care from one trust to another the care at one ward was much better and well rounded, despite this trust having a lower rating by two points. While this rating may be based on the trusts' finances, I worry that it could create fear for people coming under the care of a mental health service, something that is already such a difficult process."

NHS league tables will exacerbate regional differences rather than abolish them. Known systemic problems will not be solved within the next four years. NHS efficiency depends on resolving social care, since current social care failures hinder patient flow and service delivery. There is a massive shortage of staff across specialties, with training taking 10–15 years, producing reliance on locum and agency staff that raises costs and lowers quality. Expansion of private clinics drains NHS staff. Prevention offers long-term demand reduction but requires cross-departmental cooperation that has been absent for decades. Single-score trust ratings risk oversimplifying varied ward and service quality, especially in mental health.

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