Leading medical body warns disjointed NHS services are harming patients with multiple conditions

From the Newshound archive · first published 1 October 2026.

Nearly a third of British adults — 15.1 million people — have two or more long-term conditions, yet doctors warn the NHS is causing them direct harm by splitting their care across multiple specialists with no one overseeing the full picture. Royal College of Physicians data shows two-thirds of medics have seen patients harmed or receive worse care as a result. With no single clinician responsible for overall treatment, patients end up with clashing advice, dangerous drug interactions and repeated duplicate tests.

In one case, a woman's treatment was actively worsening her diabetes — specialists were warned, but when her blood sugar spiked, nobody listened and she was hospitalised with a life-threatening complication.

One doctor said they routinely see patients as their 'fifth or sixth consultant', spending most of their time untangling contradictory guidance left by those who came before.

Specialists are diagnosing what a patient does NOT have — telling a breathless patient 'it's not your heart' — without investigating lungs, blood or any other cause.