Responding to the latest Office for National Statistics "Experiences of NHS healthcare services in England" data Ruth Rankine, primary care director at the NHS Confederation, said:

“These new figures show that despite the severe pressures on GPs and their teams the majority of patients are satisfied with their overall experience. Overall it is very welcome that the majority of patients managed to make contact with their GP on the same day or the next, with more than two-thirds (70%) saying it was easy.

“But primary care leaders are not going to rest on their laurels because improvements can be made to address the important proportion of patients who are not satisfied and find it hard to get through to their practices. 

“These results show that despite the ongoing financial pressures and staffing crisis, GPs and their teams are still managing to keep the majority of their patients happy. Primary care is facing record demand, with millions more appointments than before the pandemic. But with the sector facing more potentially unfunded cost pressures and fears the employer national insurance hike could have a huge impact on surgeries it is still vital that primary care is give the right support it needs to keep patients safe and satisfied.”