Our annual assessment of the state of health and social care in England has published.
State of Care looks at the quality of care over the past year.
This year's report focuses on cross-cutting themes rather than sector-specific findings, however we do highlight that, at 31 July 2022:
- 83% of adult social care services were rated as good or outstanding.
- 96% of GP practices were rated as good or outstanding.
- 75% of NHS acute core services were rated as good or outstanding.
- 77% of all mental health core services (NHS and independent) were rated as good our outstanding.
Based on our inspection activity, information received from the public and those who deliver care alongside other evidence, our overall assessment is that the health and care system is gridlocked and unable to operate effectively.
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“The health and care system is gridlocked and unable to operate effectively. This means that people are stuck – stuck in hospital because there isn’t the social care support in place for them to leave, stuck in emergency departments waiting for a hospital bed to get the treatment they need, and stuck waiting for ambulances that don’t arrive because those same ambulances are stuck outside hospitals waiting to transfer patients. "
Ian Trenholm, Chief Executive, CQC
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 Most people are still receiving good care when they can access it – too often, however, people are not able to access the care they need.
Capacity in adult social care has reduced and unmet need has increased.
Only 2 in 5 people are able to leave hospital when they are ready to do so, contributing to record-breaking waits in emergency departments following a decision to admit, and dangerous ambulance handover delays.
 The repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt by individuals, families and care staff – people are still being affected by problems ranging from frustrations in accessing regular appointments to delays that stop people getting the life-saving treatment they need.
Many people are still waiting for the health and social care support and treatment they need, and many are waiting too long.
 People continue to experience inequality of access, experience and outcomes across health and social care. It is vital that everyone, inclusively, has good quality care, and equal access, experience and outcomes from health and social care services.
Health and social care providers need to do more to make their services accessible, especially to people with different communication needs.
 In 2021/22 we continued to focus on higher risk providers and where people were most at risk of receiving poor care.
Overall, when people have been able to actually access the care they need, we have been able to reassure people that the quality of care at the point of delivery is mostly good. Health and social care staff across the country are working relentlessly to ensure people are kept safe.
But, in this year's report, we highlight concerns about specific service areas, in particular maternity services and those that care for people with a learning disability and autistic people.
 Across all health and social care services, providers are struggling desperately to recruit and retain staff with the right skills and in the right numbers to meet the increasing needs of people in their care.
Despite their efforts, in many cases providers are losing this battle, as staff are drawn to industries with higher pay and less stressful conditions.
 This year, integrated care systems (ICSs) were formally established and the role of integrated care boards set out in legislation. This will bring with it a new role for CQC to review and assess each ICS, starting next year.
We have for several years been looking at the challenges for systems, particularly around inclusivity and planning in health and care services for residents.
From our own work looking at care within the emerging and newly formed systems, and from listening to people’s experiences of care, we can point to some areas of focus for local systems as well as some tangible collaborations that are already making a difference in people’s lives.
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