Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 6
6
Accepted
Paragraph: 63
The NHS responded quickly and strongly to the demands of the pandemic, but compared to...
Conclusion
The NHS responded quickly and strongly to the demands of the pandemic, but compared to other health systems it “runs hot”—with little spare capacity built in to cope with sudden and unexpected surges of demand such as in a pandemic.
Government response summary AI-generated
The government accepts the conclusion that the NHS runs hot with little spare capacity, outlining existing steps taken to increase capacity, including beds and staff, and committing to future investment in additional capacity and improved management.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Paragraph Reference:
63
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
The government accepts this recommendation. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the NHS has been under significant pressure. There were 390,000 general and acute beds available in 1987, but there are now around 141,000. The NHS has been running at close to full capacity for many years, and this has made it difficult to cope with the surge in demand caused by the pandemic. In recognition of this, the government has taken a number of steps to increase the capacity of the NHS, including: ● Increasing the number of beds available in hospitals. ● Increasing the number of staff working in the NHS. ● Improving the efficiency of NHS services. The government is committed to ensuring that the NHS has the resources it needs to cope with future surges in demand. This includes investing in additional capacity, as well as improving the way that the NHS is organised and managed.
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