Four in five health and social care workers think that their organisation does not have adequate resources to meet patient's care needs, a survey by Dods Research has found.
The survey, The NHS in five years' time, examined the responses of 2608 health and social care workers about their thoughts on the future of the NHS. It found that just 4% of them thought that the NHS would be able to meet the £22 billion of efficiency savings by 2020, while 50% of the respondents thought that financial constraints on the health services had a significant impact on their role over the course of the last year. Only 12% replied to the survey saying that there had been no impact on their role due to financial constraints.
Howard Catton, director of policy at the RCN, said: 'This is an important survey in terms of providing a reality check on the future of the NHS. The will to change on the front line is there but to achieve the £22 billion efficiency saving outlined by the government would require efficiency never before seen in the NHS.'
The survey also highlighted concerns about the introduction of seven-day services. It found that 34% of staff surveyed did not think that the expansion would have a positive effect on clinical services. Even in the 42% who thought that the move would be positive, the survey found concerns about the financial burden that seven-day services would have on the NHS.
Mr Catton added: 'The commitment to introduce changes to the way that staff work in the NHS but this survey is still a loud, clear call for the resources and funding to achieve these changes.'
Dods is an organisation which collects political reference data.