Is the NHS heading for its worst winter ever?

Waiting in A&E, waiting for routine hospital treatment and waiting for cancer care.

New figures released today for NHS England show the numbers waiting for hospital services have risen to a record high and millions of patients are suffering as a result.

Our Health and Social Care Editor Victoria Macdonald has been to Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust where, even before winter has hit, they were running out of beds.

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[ডাঃউচ্ছ্বাস]

I'm a doctor from Bangladesh. I came in to work in NHS for better career opportunities and work life balance.
After working here for sometime, now I am thinking of heading back home.
The workload is too much, I cannot give the best care my patients deserve due to poor staffing and lack of facilities.
No computer to work on, the ones that do work are too slow.
The list goes on. It's complete chaos.
Nurses going to food banks, doctors fear of becoming homeless with rising rents.
It's absolutely bullocks here.
The NHS is collapsing, if not already collapsed.

[samezidrovibes]

Well nobody wants to work in toxic places anymore and hospitals are just that. I feel sorry for all who suffer.

[kimoykalinago]

It's all by design!! To usher in American style health care!

[kingdarius]

Is it really unfair to ask if Nurses deserves to be paid as politicians?

[HoneybeeAdventures]

I had emergency treatment in Romania A&E. Bloods taken, heart trace Xray - with a lead blocker to protect thyroid. Fluids. I was in and out within 1.5 hours and had all of this treatment with results back. Last time I was in A&E in the UK. I waited for 12 hours to be seen by a doctor. The managment consultants that they waste their money hiring could not have arranged a worse system if they tried.

[deliamurphy]

Well said by this young lady, she's right. I stand with her, no one in government is listening to the REAL needs of the people. Also, I don't think she was shouting at you, a bit over the top with the tactic to shut people up. This young lady was just very very concerned for the youth of today. If having strong views and voice them in a strong and earnest manner then we live in a sad country.

[grahamturner]

Before Cameron, Osborne and Hunt the waiting time for a GP was 24 hours and customer satisfaction with the NHS was the highest in the entire history of the service.

[bob]

The tories should be up in a Nuremburg style trial for what they have done to the NHS over the last 12 years.

[Alex-cwrz]

Just remember in 2010 the NHS had it's highest satisfaction rating in history, look at it now 12 years of tory rule. Just to point out when they say they spend to much on the NHS, we spend 4 times less per patient than the USA. Why don't we go to 3.5x and get this sorted.

[googleuser]

I bet Chris Hopson has a 6 or even 7 figure salary with fantastic benefits. I doubt he would take a 50% pay cut or willing to be paid at the same pay structure as nurse and carer.

[AnnMr]

Until the government intervenes. Stops degrading the NHS by selling off parts of it and putting people within the organisation on zero hour contracts, like switch board staff and cleaners who are the backbone of the organisation.... Each winter will be worse than the last. Your local GP

[abbiebrown]

Nurses deserve a pay rise for saving patients lives. Keep up the great work 💕

[mrsapplez]

I had to leave nhs.

Nurses/ hca crying in toilets then going back to shift.

16 years and I couldn't do it any more.

We need more

[ronavs]

It's not just about the payrise, it's also the pressure workload and poor staffing levels that makes it so much harder to bear and it has been a routine every single day for the staff.

[slaynw.]

Sadly, most people dont want to work in the medical field, so their always understaffed, over worked, underpaid and over stressed. The government needs to make the medical field more attractive for the new generations to enter in, otherwise things are only going to get worse with the coming years, not only in the U.K, but around the world.

[yasminbarkho]

GOD BLESS YOU NURSES AND DOCTORS FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THAT YOU ARE DOING

[QZDog]

People need to stop talking about the NHS being free… it isn’t, we all pay for it via our taxes. We should demand that our taxes are used more effectively, & invested where it’s needed the most

[karmacop]

England remember and never vote TORIES again 12 years off bull .watching from Scotland peace and love to all

[jonathanwilson]

people where waiting in A E corridors back in 1990s . and 1980s. Nurse were unpaid, when I started working in the NHS, back 1999. Only thing that has changed is see amount of layers of managers and their increasing wage packets.

[SorminaESar]

I pray that God supply all nurse's needs according to His riches and glory