Healthcare-related harm affects 1 in 10 NHS patients

Almost one in 10 people reported experiencing harm from NHS care in the past 3 years, according to a survey led by the University of Oxford. 

The study, published in BMJ Quality & Safety, found that 9.7% of respondents reported harm, with 6.2% attributing it to the treatment or care received and 3.5% citing lack of access to services.

Researchers noted that these findings exceed those of two previous British surveys which reported harm rates of 4.8% in 2001 and 2.5% in 2013. While acknowledging that the pandemic’s impact on healthcare access may have contributed to the higher figures, they said that the study highlights issues that “may be hidden from official data on patient safety.” 

As well as the withdrawal of medical care attributed to the pandemic, the increase could also be explained by using a broader definition of harm to include psychological as well as physical harm, the study authors suggested.

Lead author of the new study, Dr Michele Peters, medical sociologist at the University of Oxford, told Medscape News UK : “In the past, harm has usually been measured using clinical rather than patient perspectives.” She explained that this emphasis tended to highlight harm associated with clinical errors rather than harm related to system issues, such as long waits for treatment. 

The latest study is one of the first to explicitly assess actions taken following harm due to lack of access to care. Around half of those awaiting treatment experienced physical or psychological consequences, with longer waits more common in deprived areas.

“Current waiting list management approaches do recognise that some people are particularly vulnerable to deterioration during the waiting period,” Peters said. This means they may end up in poor condition when called for treatment. She noted that some interventions, such as weight management or smoking cessation support, aim to maintain patients’ health while they wait for procedures like hip replacements.

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Source: Medscape, 2 April 2025