Almost half of under-30s lack confidence in NHS
Very concerning data from the recent Times Generation Z study that highlight the uphill struggle institutions including the NHS face in building trust and respect in those born between 1995-2012.
Fundamentally, the study found that Generation Z has lost faith in the institutions that have generally been accepted and trusted by previous generations. In particular, it found that almost half of those questioned for the study would not be confident in the NHS to treat them if they were ill; 7 per cent would not trust it at all and the remainder (41 per cent) said they would trust the NHS "a little".
Mistrust in the police was also in stark contrast to a similar survey 20 years ago, with only 11 per cent of those between 18 and 27 now saying they would trust the police if they were accused of a crime. Data from 20 years ago showed that 44 per cent of those questioned would trust the police a lot if they were accused of a crime – a huge drop in numbers.
Pertinent to my line of work is that Generation Z are of course the most likely to be receiving maternity care over the next few years. The terrible maternity scandals in Nottingham, Shrewsbury and Telford and now perhaps Swansea Bay have understandably rocked people's faith in a health service offering fundamental to most people's lives.
As we await the again delayed Ockenden review of Nottingham maternity care, the Government has a serious problem to contend with – to rebuild faith in a system designed to service and protect the whole country.
Most of the medical negligence team here would agree that hospital trusts can help to build trust by dealing swiftly and honestly with patients concerns and also those of practitioners voicing concerns about systemic wrongdoing.
Transparency when things go wrong is an absolute necessity in encouraging understanding and trust in an NHS that is struggling to fulfil the promises of its patient charter.
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