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Showing results for tags 'Long-term conditions'.
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Content ArticlePeople who have a long-term condition may be in contact with multiple health and care organisations and may experience harm if their care is not co-ordinated. This investigation focuses on people with long-term conditions and how their care is co-ordinated, specifically considering the role of ‘care co-ordinator’. It is intended for healthcare organisations, policymakers and the public to help improve patient safety in relation to co-ordinating care for people with long-term or complex healthcare needs. Findings The NHS has produced a definition of the professional role of NHS care co-ordinator. However, there is variation in how this role is implemented. Other national organisations have different definitions of care co-ordination and care navigation, which can create ambiguity for people overseeing these roles. There is not a single person/role/organisation responsible for co-ordinating care for people with long-term or complex health and care needs across multiple health and care organisations. The health and care system frequently fails to support care co-ordination across multiple care pathways and instead focuses on individual diseases or issues. This can leave people who have complex long-term conditions with uncoordinated care. Accessing and navigating health and care services can be difficult and complex, and patients and carers would like improved service integration and care co-ordination. Patients and carers act as a central point for information and contact for providers, but when they are unwell or unable to do this, care can be impacted. People who are unable to navigate the health and care system can experience deterioration of health, miss appointments or their care may become delayed or forgotten about, meaning they may need more intense treatment in the future or longer stays in hospital. Patients and carers have to retell their health history to different health and care providers. They believe the system is not joined up and that information does not flow across health and care organisations, or that different parts of the system cannot access information from other providers. When patients are discharged from a health or care setting out of normal working hours they do not always know who they can speak to about any concerns or their ongoing care. Different methods of sharing health and care information can create an information gap, particularly out of hours and at the weekend, resulting in a situation where not all health and care staff have the appropriate information to make decisions. Patients and carers can feel exhausted, burnt out, frustrated, angry and guilty, among other emotions. Patients and carers physical and mental health may deteriorate because of the extra burden of navigating the health and care system. Patients and carers may disengage with the health and care system because they are exhausted and frustrated. This may lead to poor outcomes for both patients and carers. There are different ways of supporting care co-ordination across the system, some of which are assisted by the charity sector. Safety recommendations HSSIB recommends that NHS England/Department of Health and Social Care, working with other relevant organisations, reviews and evaluates the implementation of the care co-ordinator role. This is to ensure that all patients with long-term conditions have their care co-ordinated and that they have a single point of contact 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to help them with any queries or concerns that they may have. HSSIB recommends that the Department of Health and Social Care works with NHS England and other stakeholders, to develop a strategy that ensures that all diseases are given parity and that all people with a long-term condition in primary, secondary, tertiary and community or social care have their care effectively co-ordinated across multiple agencies. This is to ensure that people with long-term health conditions have co-ordinated care plans with effective communication between services and a single point of contact for concerns or questions. Safety observation Health and care organisations can improve patient safety by allocating a point of contact for patients and/or their carers when people are discharged from services out of normal working hours. This will ensure patients and their carers are able to escalate any concerns relating to their ongoing care and drive improvements in care co-ordination. Related reading on the hub: Read Patient's Safety Learning's response to the findings and recommendations of this HSSIB report
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News Article
Watchdog urges regular BMI checkups for millions across England and Wales
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Millions of people in England and Wales with a long-term health condition should have their body mass index (BMI) checked regularly to prevent diabetes and heart disease, an NHS watchdog is recommending. Anyone found to be overweight should talk to sensitive, non-judgmental doctors and nurses about how they can lead a healthier life and stop their excess pounds causing them problems. The checks should lead to more people being referred to weight management services for help overhauling their diet and lifestyles or being prescribed weight loss drugs. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which advises the NHS on which treatments represent value for money, hopes its recommendations will help curb obesity. People with conditions such as diabetes, lung problems and heart failure should have their BMI and waist-to-height ratio assessed and recorded at least once a year, Nice said on Tuesday in draft guidance which is set to be published as a final document in August. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 18 March 2025 -
News ArticleOn 20 March 2020, Rowan Brown started to feel a tickle at the back of her throat. Over the next few days, new symptoms began to emerge: difficulty breathing, some tiredness. By the following week, the UK had been put under lockdown in a last-minute attempt to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2, or Covid-19. Brown didn’t know then she was at the beginning of a condition that did not yet have a name, but which has since become known as Long Covid. After two weeks, she had a Zoom with a friend, and at the end of the conversation it was as if all life force had drained out of her body. Her doctor advised her to stay in bed for two weeks. Those two weeks turned into three and a half months of extended Covid symptoms: nausea, fevers, night sweats, intense muscle and joint pain, allodynia (a heightened sensitivity to pain), hallucinations, visual disturbances. By the end of the three months, she had noted 32 different symptoms. “I didn’t recognise the way my body felt at all: my skin, my hair,” she remembers now. “It was like being taken over by a weird alien virus, which I guess is what happened.” Brown, 48, is one of 2 million people in the UK thought to be experiencing long Covid symptoms; according to a study published last summer, roughly 400 million people worldwide have been affected. Often, long Covid patients experience mild primary infections, are never admitted to hospital and only realise there is a problem later, when the symptoms persist well beyond the usual two weeks. Some make a full recovery, some see improvements over time; others, like Brown, have seen little progress since being infected five years ago. One of the main challenges in diagnosing and treating long Covid is its unpredictability: research studies have linked it to more than 200 symptoms affecting every part of the body. Many patients go on to develop complications such as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and fibromyalgia, a chronic pain disorder; 59% of patients show signs of organ damage. The unwillingness to discuss chronic illness is especially concerning when combined with the scepticism faced by Long Covid patients, who have to advocate for themselves so that medical professionals, employers and loved ones understand the gravity of their illness. All of this conspires to make Long Covid patients feel invisible, voiceless and forgotten. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 2 March 2025 Further reading on the hub: Exploring the barriers that impact access to NHS care for people with ME and Long Covid Building an NHS that’s there for Long Covid and ME Top picks: 12 research papers on Long Covid It's time to confront Long Covid: An interview with Clare Rayner on why we must keep pushing for research, treatment and prevention Healthcare workers with Long Covid: Group litigation – a blog from David Osborn
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News Article
Emergency prescribing and ‘shared care’ withdrawn by GPs
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Emergency prescribing and monitoring of patients with severe mental health conditions are among services being cancelled by GP practices as part of “collective action”. Although the action, primarily over funding, began in the summer, growing numbers of practices are now cancelling local enhanced services, according to multiple board papers and other documents. A common theme among those being “handed back” or cancelled is prescribing and monitoring for people who have severe mental health conditions, neurological conditions, and other long-term conditions. Practices are often refusing “shared care” arrangements with secondary care, where patients with long-term conditions, including mental health illness, are meant to be monitored and supported by GPs, but also overseen by specialists. These are often funded and determined by integrated care boards locally, as “local enhanced services” or “locally commissioned services”, although they are often similar in different systems. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 20 November 2024 -
Content ArticleIn partnership with patients and partners, the Health Innovation Network have developed a range of patient information materials in different community languages to support and prepare people who have been invited for a medication review with their GP, pharmacist or other healthcare professional. These materials are free to use and can be printed and used in paper format, or shared electronically with patients by email, text or any other electronic systems used within your workplace. People who may benefit from a medication review are those who are taking several medicines regularly or are taking medicines for long term conditions. The medication review can help to identify any medicines that are no longer appropriate or any that may need a change in dose. An animation is available to help patients think about their medicines and to prepare for a Structured Medication Review. The resources available in each language are: Patient invitation letter, which you can edit to add the patient’s name and your contact details. ‘Me and My Medicines’ or ‘Are Your Medicines Working?’ information – to be shared with patients invited to attend a Structured Medication Review. Safely stopping your medicine leaflet – to be shared with patients if you agree to stop or gradually stop any medicines. There are information sheets for GP practice staff and other healthcare professionals about the various materials and how to use them: Information sheet for healthcare professionals (Are Your Medicines Working? version) Information sheet for healthcare professionals (Me and My Medicines version)
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Content Article
This is letter from #ThereForME calls for an inquiry into the persistent and historical gaps in care for those with ME and Long Covid. It is co-signed by 28 organisations and smaller initiatives and has been sent to the Chair of the Select Committee, Layla Moran MP. Patient Safety Learning are one of the signatories of this letter. The letter recommends that an inquiry is undertaken by the Health and Social Care Committee with a remit to investigate: Current gaps in care for ME and Long Covid, and their connections to historic approaches to infection-associated chronic conditions (including NHS care and research funding). Economic impacts, including the relationship between growing economic inactivity in the UK’s working age population and the lack of meaningful service provision for people with ME and Long Covid. Recommendations to strengthen future care and research for people with ME, Long Covid and other infection-associated chronic conditions - and how this can inform wider pandemic preparedness (including public health prevention strategies to mitigate the future health burden of infection-associated chronic conditions). Attitudes towards and assistance for patients with ME and Long Covid in society, including benefits provision, disability assistance, social care and guidance for settings including workplaces and education. -
Content ArticleThis study aimed to systematically evaluate interventions and effects that promote involvement in medication safety among older people with chronic diseases and to provide new ideas and references for developing standardised and effective intervention strategies to improve patient involvement in medication safety.
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News Article
Baby boomers living longer but are in worse health than previous generations
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Baby boomers are living longer but are in worse health than previous generations were at the same age, despite advances in medicine and greater awareness of healthy lifestyles, a global study shows. Researchers found people in their 50s and 60s were more likely to have serious health problems than people who were born before or during the second world war when they reached that age. The results cannot be explained by people living longer, experts at the University of Oxford and University College London (UCL) said. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, cancer, heart disease and other diseases were all affecting people at younger ages. Rates of illness and disability increased across successive generations during the last century, according to the findings published in the Journals of Gerontology. The lead author, Laura Gimeno, of UCL, said there was a “generational health drift”, with younger generations tending to have worse health than previous generations at the same age. “Even with advances in medicine and greater public awareness about healthy living, people born since 1945 are at greater risk of chronic illness and disability than their predecessors. “With up to a fifth of the population in high-income western nations now over 65, increasing demands for health and social care will have huge implications on government spending.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 7 October 2024 -
News ArticleGP practices should be working with complex patients to "actively avoid hospital admissions" this winter, according to NHS England. In a letter to ICBs and trusts, NHSE set out the actions necessary to ensure delivery of "safe, dignified and high-quality care" this winter, which must be an "overriding priority". There was a particular focus on the winter vaccination campaign, with NHS England urging providers to "make every possible effort" to boost vaccine uptake among patient-facing staff. The letter also stressed the importance of promoting the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, which from this month practices began administering to over-75s and pregnant women as an essential service under the GP contract. "This is a year-round offer but its promotion ahead of winter by health professionals is vital, particularly to those at highest risk," NHSE said. NHS England also urged local commissioners to take a "whole-system approach to managing winter demand". The letter asked ICBs to "ensure the proactive identification and management of people with complex needs and long-term conditions so care is optimised ahead of winter". "Primary care and community services should be working with these patients to actively avoid hospital admissions," NHSE added. These patients should also be offered ‘alternatives to hospital attendance’ as they may be "better served with a community response". Read full story Source: Management in Practice, 19 September 2024
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News Article
England’s worsening care shortages leave older people struggling
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Hundreds of thousands of older people in England are having to endure chronic pain, anxiety and unmet support needs owing to the worsening shortage of social care staff and care home beds. Age UK has said older people with chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart failure are increasingly struggling with living in their own homes because of a lack of help with everyday tasks such as getting out of bed, dressing and eating. The decline in the amount of support and care provided to older people is piling pressure on families and carers and leaving the NHS in constant crisis mode, contributing heavily to ambulance queues outside A&E departments, the charity said in a new report It warned that there would be a repeat of the NHS crisis this winter – in which rising numbers of elderly people have been unnecessarily stuck in hospital because of an acute lack of social care – without a shift to preventing unnecessary admissions. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 17 February 2023 -
News Article
NHS in England will have one strategy for all major conditions, including cancer
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The NHS in England is set to have a major conditions strategy to help determine policy for the care of increasing numbers of people in England with complex and often multiple long-term conditions. Conditions covered by the strategy will include cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, dementia, mental health conditions, and musculoskeletal disorders. Cancer will also be included and will no longer have its own dedicated 10 year strategy. England’s health and social care secretary, Steve Barclay, told the House of Commons on 24 January that the strategy would build on measures in the NHS long term plan. Read full story (paywalled) Source: BMJ, 25 January 2023 -
News Article
NHS in England to offer artificial pancreas to help manage type 1 diabetes
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
More than 100,000 people with type 1 diabetes in England are to be offered an artificial pancreas, which experts believe could become the “holy grail” for managing the disease. The groundbreaking device uses an algorithm to determine the amount of insulin that should be administered and reads blood sugar levels to keep them steady. A world-first trial on the NHS found it was more effective at managing diabetes than current devices and required far less input from patients. The device is now set to be rolled out across the NHS in England after it won approval from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Prof Partha Kar, national specialty adviser for diabetes at NHS England, said: “This technology has been proven to give the best control for managing type 1 diabetes and should make things like amputations, blindness, and kidney problems possibly a thing of the past.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 10 January 2023 -
Content ArticleAn estimated 1.3 billion people—16% of the global population—experience a significant disability today. People with disabilities have the right to the highest standard of health, however, this report by the World Health Organization (WHO) demonstrates that while some progress has been made in recent years, many people with disabilities continue to die earlier and have poorer health than others. The report demonstrates how these poor health outcomes are due to unfair conditions faced by people with disabilities in all areas of life, including in the health system itself. The report highlights that countries need to take urgent action to address the inequities in health caused by unjust and unfair factors within health systems. These factors—which account for many of the differences in health outcomes between persons with and without disabilities—can take the form of: negative attitudes of healthcare providers, health information in formats that cannot be understood, or difficulties accessing a health centre due to the physical environment, lack of transport or financial barriers. 9789240063600-eng.pdf
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Content ArticleThe Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) is an independent scientific advisory body that looks at industrial injuries benefit and how it is administered. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the IIAC has been reviewing and assessing the increasing scientific evidence on the occupational risks of Covid-19. This report builds on an IIAC interim Position Paper published in February 2021 and considers more recent data on the occupational impacts of Covid-19, particularly around the longer term health problems and disability caused by the virus. IIAC found the most convincing and consistent evidence was for health and social care workers in certain occupational settings, who present with five serious pathological complications following Covid-19 that have been shown to cause persistent impairment and loss of function in some workers. The IIAC recommends the following prescription should be added to the list of prescribed diseases for which benefit is payable. This applies to workers in hospitals and other healthcare settings and care home/home care workers working in proximity to patients in the two weeks prior to infection: Persisting pneumonitis or lung fibrosis following acute Covid-19 pneumonitis. Persisting pulmonary hypertension caused by a pulmonary embolism developing between 3 days before and 90 days after a diagnosis of Covid-19. Ischaemic stroke developing within 28 days of a Covid-19 diagnosis. Myocardial infarction developing within 28 days of a Covid-19 diagnosis. Symptoms of Post Intensive Care Syndrome following ventilatory support treatment for Covid-19.
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Content ArticleThe Health Survey (Northern Ireland) has run annually, on a continuous basis, since 2010/11. The 2021/22 survey included questions relating to general health, mental health and wellbeing, smoking and drinking alcohol. The sample size for the survey was 3,154 individuals aged 16 and over. This article presents the key findings of the Health Survey (Northern Ireland): First Results 2021/22 report. One important finding was that of respondents who had been in contact with the health and social care system in the last year, 73% were either very satisfied or satisfied with their experience (down from 85% in 2020/21), while almost a fifth (18%) were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied (double that in 2020/21 – 9%).
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Content ArticleImagine you have a disease that leaves you in severe pain, and frequently means you need emergency strong opioid pain relief. But your condition is rare, and A&E staff often have very limited knowledge of your condition. And on top of that you’re black, and staff assume you’re drug seeking, and this happens over and over again. This is just one of the ways people with sickle cell disorder face discrimination when trying to access health care. Is it any wonder you’d rather avoid the health and care service than have substandard care and/or face stigmatisation?
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Content Article
Age UK: Fixing the Foundations (17 February 2023)
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Older people
A new in-depth report from the Charity Age UK, ‘Fixing the Foundations’, reveals how our under-funded and overstretched NHS and social care system is struggling and sometimes failing to cope with the needs of older people. The report provides a first-hand account of older people’s difficulties in getting the good, joined up health and social care they need to manage at home, leaving them at risk of crisis which often results in being admitted to hospital. Yet the evidence is clear that with the right care at the right time many of these admissions could have been avoided. The report also includes perspectives from professionals and unpaid carers. It also shows how living with multiple long-term health conditions, as a significant proportion of older people do, including more than two-thirds of those aged over 85, makes it especially hard to navigate health services which are still usually organised around individual illnesses and diseases. Meanwhile social care was often inadequate or absent in these older people’s lives. Age UK estimates that astonishingly, over 1.6 million older people have some level of fundamental care and support need, such as help to get dressed, washed or getting out of bed, that is not being fully addressed. Key findings Half (49%) of all the people arriving in A&E by ambulance are over 65. A third (36%) of all the people arriving in A&E by ambulance are over 75. Unplanned hospital admissions have been rising and have become more frequent, particularly for the oldest old. The proportion of older people feeling supported to manage their condition has been falling consistently, almost 20% in relative terms since 2016/17. 2.6 million people over 50 have unmet social care needs increasing to 15% of people in their 70s, and 21% of people in their 80s. In 2022, there were 165,000 vacant posts in social care- an increase of 50% and the highest rate on record. Call for action Integrated Care Systems (ICS) to develop comprehensive strategies for meeting the health and social care needs of older people at home, and in care homes, living in their areas. This must include major efforts to embed prevention in their work so older people can avoid the need for crisis care and maintain their independence. Social care reform and a major and sustained increase in funding. The NHS cannot deliver these improvements alone. The lack of adequate social care for basic daily needs simply stores up problems, leaving older people less able to care for themselves and arriving in hospital with serious health problems that could have been avoided. Multidisciplinary working to become the default method of delivering health and care services to older people. Older people are too often left to fall between the cracks of disjointed services and professionals who don’t communicate well with each other. For ICSs, this means making sure that social care services – and by extension the local authorities that are responsible for them - are central to their leadership and decision-making. A better paid health and social care workforce, with the skills and competencies to properly support older people would make a huge difference to the quality and availability of care. A step change in the recognition of and financial and practical support on offer to unpaid carers, who are holding up many parts of the health and care system. -
Content ArticleWhether it is the waiting lists for mental health support or the inadequacies of long-Covid clinics, millions of patients with long-term health conditions have been struggling for years to get basic healthcare. The chaotic decline that has befallen acute care in A&E has hit day-to-day services, with effects from delayed consultant appointments and year-long clinic waiting lists to slashed community care. Mental health bed shortages mean young people need now to have “attempted suicide several times” before they get a place in an inpatient unit in England. Record delays for cancer treatment are leaving patients facing lethal waits. Thousands of people with neurological conditions are waiting up to two years to even see a consultant. For them, the ground has long been shaking. It is just that no one else noticed. The Guardian has spoken to disabled people the length and breadth of England and Wales about their wait for care. For them, the NHS is not an “in case of emergency” service but the engine they rely on to keep their day-to-day life running.
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Content ArticleThis webinar by the World Health Organization (WHO) is part of a series hosted to mark World Patient Safety Day 2022, which focused on the theme of 'Medication without harm'. This webinar looks at medication safety in polypharmacy, introducing the WHO technical report on Medication safety in polypharmacy. It features perspectives on medication management from patients, carers and national healthcare leaders.
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Content ArticleAir pollution is an issue that affects us all; it is associated with impacts on lung development in children, heart disease, stroke, cancer, exacerbation of asthma, increased mortality and other health issues. This year’s Chief Medical Officer's report lays out the scale of the challenge of reducing air pollution and the substantial progress that has been made. It highlights achievable solutions across different sectors and makes the case that we need to continue to be active in reducing outdoor air pollution. Report chapters Air pollution and health. This covers the effects of air pollution on health, including inequalities Outdoor air pollution emissions and recent trends How air pollution is changing Outdoor and indoor air pollution solutions Air pollution chemistry, monitoring, forecasting and information City examples – work to reduce air pollution in Birmingham, Bradford and London Air pollution research and innovation
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Content ArticleThe waiting list in England stood at more than seven million in September 2022, up by 1.2 million since September 2021 and 2.6 million since 2019. This analysis by the King's Fund outlines what different patients on the waiting list are waiting for, breaking this figure down into: different medical and surgical specialties whether patients are waiting for admission, diagnostics or decisions It highlights that many on the waiting list are awaiting further diagnostics or decisions before treatment can commence, and others are waiting for treatment that does not require admission to hospital.
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Content ArticleDuring the first waves of the Covid-19 pandemic, the UK shielding policy was introduced with the intention to protect people at the highest risk of harm from Covid-19 infection. This study in the journal Public Health aimed to describe intervention effects in Wales at one year. The authors retrospectively compared linked demographic and clinical data for cohorts of people identified for shielding from 23 March to 21 May 2020 with the rest of the population. The largest clinical categories in the shielded cohort were severe respiratory condition (35.5%), immunosuppressive therapy (25.9%) and cancer (18.6%). The study found that: Deaths and healthcare utilisation were higher amongst shielded people than the general population, as would be expected in the sicker population. Differences in testing rates, deprivation and pre-existing health are potential confounders, but lack of clear impact on infection rates raises questions about the success of shielding and indicates that further research is required to fully evaluate this national policy intervention.
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Content ArticleThe occupational therapy (OT) workforce is under huge pressure. Increased demand coupled with workforce shortages is challenging OTs’ capacity to provide essential support to people whose lives are impacted by long term health conditions and disability. In November 2022, the Royal College of Occupational Therapists surveyed OT practitioners across the UK about the workplace issues they’re facing now, and how these affect the services they deliver to the public. They also asked how practitioners are impacted personally, including whether they intend to continue working as OTs. The challenges shared by over 2,600 respondents have significant implications for the resilience of the current and future OT workforce, and the people who use OT services. Key findings 86% reported an increased demand for OT services within the previous 12 months. 79% stated that people were presenting more complex needs due to delayed interventions. 78% said that their team wasn’t large enough to meet the demand. 63% felt they were too busy to provide the level of care they’d like. 59% rated their work-related stress as 7 or above on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest level of stress. Key recommendations Governments must recognise that investment in the NHS and social care is critical to a healthy population and therefore economic growth. Investment in the OT workforce must be matched to service and demographic need, not just in the NHS but in social care as well. Capacity should be built within primary and community health and social care services, to ensure people receive advice and help early on, rather than when in acute need or with increased complexity due to delayed intervention. "We’re churning patients out faster and faster, older, frailer and more complex, but given no time to rehab or improve them, knowing that they will likely get readmitted again in a few days. That is disheartening when there is so much we could do if we were given a day or two, or there were more services in the community."
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Content ArticleTechnologies to assist with diabetes treatment and care have evolved rapidly over the past two decades. With each new innovation coming to the market, there are hopes that technologies will solve the numerous, complex issues related to diabetes. However, although it has been demonstrated that overall, these technologies—when available—bring major benefits to people living with diabetes, they do not make the condition disappear. This article in Diabetes Epidemiology and Management discusses the interconnections between technologies and diabetes distress, an often under-acknowledged consequence of the continuous demands of diabetes.
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Content ArticleA survey of over 4,000 people with long-term conditions on prescription charges has found the charge is a barrier to accessing medicine. The findings come following the UK government's announcement that the prescription charge will rise on 1 April 2023. The Prescription Charges Coalition, which brings together around 50 organisations and professional bodies to campaign to scrap prescription charges in England for people with long-term conditions, conducted the survey between February and March. It found: Nearly 1 in 10 people have skipped medication in the past year due to the cost of prescriptions. Of this group: Almost a third (30%) of those who have missed medication now have other physical health problems in addition to their original health condition. 37% now have other mental health problems in addition to their original health condition. And over half (53%) have had to take time off work as a result of worsening health. 12% of people who pay for their NHS prescription have cut medication in half to make it last longer. Over a third (35%) of survey respondents reported they had the duration of their prescription changed, meaning they’re paying more frequently for their medicines. Almost 2 in 5 (38%) people with long-term health conditions only learned about the prepayment certificate more than a year after their diagnosis. The survey shows that people with long-term health conditions that cannot afford their medication are seeing an increase in GP visits, trips to accident and emergency (A&E), and hospital stays. Some survey respondents reported they had to stay in hospital for up to 6 weeks. Not being able to afford medicine has also led to mental health is sues and increased time off work.
