Multiple Health Problems in Adults

More than a quarter of adults in Britain have multiple health problems, according to a major study warning of “alarming” pressures being placed on the NHS.

The research shows that the vast majority of GPs’ time is being taken up by patients with several conditions, with eight in 10 prescriptions now issued to patients with more than one health complaint.

Researchers from Cambridge University said the trend was set to worsen, amid soaring rates of obesity fuel diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

The four-year study of more than 400,000 adults in England found 27.2 per cent were suffering from more than one health condition - with even higher rates among women.

Overall, 30 per cent of women had multiple conditions, along with 24.4 per cent of men.

More than half of GP visits and hospital admissions were found to be devoted to those with multiple conditions, and 79 per cent of prescriptions were issued to those with more than one complaint.

Researchers said the shocking figures showed the need to redesign services to create “one stop shops” to treat patients more holistically.

They said NHS systems - which fund hospitals for appointments to treat separate diseases - did not put the patient first, and wasted precious resources.

Dr Duncan Edwards, a research fellow from Cambridge University, said: “The numbers are just startling when you see them in black and white.

“The average person with diabetes has three or four other conditions, yet the NHS structures forbid looking after patients properly. We need a one-stop shop, not a system that thinks in terms of single diseases.” High blood pressure was the most common - with almost one in five patients found to be suffering from it. And one in ten patients were diagnosed with depression or anxiety, while one in ten had chronic pain.

The research showed that overlaps between the diseases were common, with an average of three conditions each for those aged 75 and over.