As HH says very little impact of PFI on QMC, and what there is was relatively well planned for in economic terms. Under capacity is a huge problem or rather using all our capacity all of the time. We've been running at over 95% bed occupancy for months now. Most modern healthcare system aim at between 75 - 80% as the optimum occupancy.
To alleviate that, social care has to be addressed. It is crazy to keep "well" patients in bed that costs £380 per night when the cost in a care home is about a third of that price. However, without a properly funded care home system that isn't only being squeezed at the margins, but at its very core by local govt; who in turn are being squeezed by central govt; there seems no sensible way forward on this under current policy.
Long term we need the population as a whole to take much more responsibility for their own health. Not easy when big business in this country is determined, for example, to make us consume more and more useless calories in their pursuit of profit.
My oft repeated mantra about this government holds spectacularly true in this case; they know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.
