Clapping for the NHS during the pandemic deemed potentially ‘dangerous’ by health ombudsman

Clapping for the NHS during the pandemic has been deemed potentially “dangerous” by the health ombudsman.

Standing on the front porch every Thursday to clap for the NHS during lockdown may seem like a lifetime ago now, but health service ombudsman Rebecca Hilsenrath fears that the gesture may have had “dangerous” implications. 

Clap for our Carers founder Annemarie Plas is believed to have launched the tradition, which saw Brits flocking to their front doors clap for one minute at 8 pm every Thursday to share a sign of appreciation for NHS and social care staff.  

However, Hilsenrath warned that clapping for the NHS likened the organisation to “a national religion”, adding that “no organisation should be beyond constructive criticism”. 

She has now submitted evidence to a review of the NHS launched by the new government, and led by Professor Lord Ara Darzi. 

Hilsenrath told The Sunday Telegraph: “There is an argument I have heard that clapping for the NHS during the pandemic was quite a dangerous thing to do … because no organisation can be a national religion, and no organisation should be beyond constructive criticism.

“I don’t think that it is helpful for any organisation to be treated as religion.”

In an interview with Sky News, the ombudsman admitted to clapping for the NHS during the pandemic. However, she said she became aware of the argument from someone within the organisation that “deification and hatred are both profoundly unhelpful”. 

The ombudsman has received over 27,000 complaints about the health service in 2023/24, compared to ten years ago, when just under 18,000 complaints were lodged. 

The number of complaints has steadily increased since 2013/2014, but decreased significantly by almost 6,000 between 2019/20 to 2020/21 at the start of the pandemic.

Hilsenrath believes that the numbers “speak to a change in attitude towards the NHS and a far lower degree of happiness with services”. 

“Of course, people were enormously grateful for the extraordinary efforts that people in NHS went to during that time, including risking their own personal safety.

“I also know that the national mood has changed since then, and I think it’s incredibly difficult as an NHS worker to consistently read about the failings in your service, and how you’re letting people down.”

A spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care also called the NHS “broken”, saying: “The NHS is broken but we are determined to get it back on its feet so it can be there for all of us when we need it.

“We will be honest about the challenges facing the health service and will work to tackle them.

“The independent investigation into the NHS by Lord Darzi is a step towards identifying and solving these problems as we create an NHS fit for the future.”