Surveys

We use surveys to find out what people think of the NHS healthcare services that they use.

The results help assess NHS performance. We also use them for regulatory activities such as registration, monitoring ongoing compliance and reviews.

Recent surveys

Maternity survey 2021

Published: February 2022

This survey looked at the experiences of women who had a live birth in early 2021.

We found that:

• Questions asking about continuity of care improved compared with the last survey in 2019.
• Most women said that if they needed it, they were given enough support for their mental health during their pregnancy.
• The majority of women continued to report positive experiences about their interactions with staff.
• Results continued to show poorer experiences of care for many women postnatally compared with other aspects of the maternity pathway.

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Children and young people's survey 2020

Published: December 2021

This survey looks at the experiences of children, young people and their parents and carers attending hospital.

We found that:

• Most children, young people and their parents or carers were positive about their overall hospital experience.
• The majority of children and young people said that staff looked after them well, were friendly, treated them with privacy and listened to what they had to say.
• Children and young people were less positive about their experiences of the hospital food, involvement in decision making and being discharged.
• This year, children, young people and their parents reported that there was less to do in hospital than in previous years.

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Community mental health survey 2021

Published: December 2021

This survey looked at the experiences of people receiving community mental health services in 2020-2021.

We found that:

• Many people said their mental health worsened due to changes made to their care in response to COVID-19.
• People receiving telephone-based care reported worse than average experiences in key areas of care.
• Many results are at their lowest point through the eight-year period 2014 to 2021.
• In many areas of care, such as access and communication, results have been declining for a number of years and continue to do so.

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Adult inpatient survey 2020

Published: October 2021

This survey looks at the experiences of people who stayed at least one night in hospital as an inpatient.

We found that:

• Most people were positive about their overall hospital experience and being treated with dignity and respect.
• The majority of patients reported positive interactions with doctors and nurses.
• Information provision at discharge and follow-up care are areas in need of improvement.
• People who were considered frail consistently reported poorer than average experiences.

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Urgent and emergency care survey 2020

Published: September 2021

This survey collected information on the experiences of people who received care from urgent and emergency care services in 2020.

We found that:

• Most people continue to be positive about many important aspects of their urgent and emergency care.
• More people reported a ‘very good’ overall experience of care and most people were positive about their interactions with staff.
• People were less positive about emotional support, pain management and availability of staff when they felt they needed attention.
• Information provision when leaving A&E or the urgent treatment centre remains a problem for many patients.

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Coronavirus (COVID-19) inpatient experience survey

Published: November 2020

The survey captured the views of more than 10,000 adults who were discharged from hospital during April and May 2020. We carried it out to gather feedback to help services and local systems plan for and improve future coronavirus care.

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Trends in the Adult Inpatient Survey 2005-2014

Published: November 2015

This analysis looks at the experiences of people receiving adult inpatient services over a ten year period.

We found that:

• Patients’ experiences of care have generally been good.
• Most areas we ask patients about have seen little meaningful change or improvement.
• Patients report substantial improvements in areas such as cleanliness and mixed sex accommodation.
• There have been areas of deterioration, for example in waiting times.

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Ambulance survey of Hear and Treat callers 2013/14

Published: 2014

This survey looked at the experiences of over 2,900 people who called an ambulance service in December 2013 and January 2014.

We found that:

• Most people were positive, but some did not understand or agree with the advice given at the end of the call.
• Overall, callers were more likely to agree with the decision to not send an ambulance if they had received a full explanation of the reasons.

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Outpatient survey 2011

Published: February 2012

This survey collected patients' experiences of their most recent visit to an outpatient department.

We found that:

• More people felt that they were treated with respect and dignity.
• Staff need to improve the way they provide information to patients.