Mr. Bernard Gloster:

There are always two parts required for the type of improvement to which the Deputy is pointing. We have tended in the past to focus on the narrative of more - that we need more staff, more buildings, more money or more resources. There is no question but that we can always do more with more. The part where there has been substantial improvement without necessarily just having more has been in areas where we have decided to go after particular challenges for the public. For example, when I came to this post, there was a substantial and increasing problem with people over 75 years of age waiting in emergency departments, including waiting for more than 24 hours. Dr. Henry will be able to tell the committee that the international evidence shows that is not good for people’s outcomes. We focused on that in the second half of last year and we made very substantial improvements. There will be days when a handful of people will be waiting for a variety of reasons, but we really have moved to a zero-tolerance approach to those over 75 waiting in emergency departments. That is about a change in how we practice rather than just having more. That is the type of focus on those critical problems.