Website of the Department of Health

Report on the National Patient Choice Survey, England - July 2007

This report gives the final results of around 62,000 responses to the eighth national patient choice survey commissioned to assess the implementation of choice at PCT level. The series of surveys, conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Department, monitor patient awareness of choice and recall of having been offered a choice of hospital for their first outpatient appointment. They were designed to provide a national overview of choice and summary results at PCT level. The report also contains combined survey results to date by age, sex and ethnic group.

The main findings of the July survey are:

• There was a further reduction in the percentage of patients recalling being offered a choice of hospital for their first outpatient appointment: 43% in July, down from 44% in May, but up from 30% in the first (May/June 2006) survey.
• There was no change in the percentage of patients aware before they visited their GP that they had a choice of hospitals for their first appointment: 38% in May and July, up from 29% in the May/June 2006 survey.
• 63% of patients who were aware of choice recalled being offered choice, whereas 32% of those not aware of choice recalled being offered it, compared with 63% and 33% respectively in the May survey.
• 28% of patients who were offered a choice of hospital were also offered a copy of the ‘Choosing your hospital’ booklet, down from 29% in May but up from 20% in the May/June 2006 survey.
• 78% of patients who were offered choice were satisfied with the process and 5% were dissatisfied, similar to the May survey.
• Location or transport considerations were given most often, by 72% of patients, as an important factor when choosing a hospital.

Provisional headline findings of the September 2007 survey are:

• 45% of patients recalled being offered a choice of hospital for their first outpatient appointment, an increase from 43% in the July survey although still below the maximum of 48% reported in the March survey.
• 39% of patients were aware before they visited their GP that they had a choice of hospitals for their first appointment, compared with 38% in July.
• 63% of patients who were aware of choice recalled being offered choice, whereas 31% of those not aware of choice recalled being offered it, compared with 63% and 32% respectively in the July survey.
• 27% of patients who were offered a choice of hospital were also offered a copy of the ‘Choosing your hospital’ booklet, compared with 28% in the July survey.

• Download Report on the National Patient Choice Survey (PDF, 1240K)