Assessing the resilience of a key health service: The response of acute surgical provision in England to the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic

Andrew Hutchings, Orlagh Carroll, Geoff Bellingan, David Cromwell, S Ramani Moonesinghe, Susan J Moug, Neil Smart, Ravinder Vohra, Robert J Hinchliffe, Richard Grieve, Department of Health Services Research and Policy, London School of Hygiene , Tropical Medicine, Bloomsbury Institute for Intensive Care Medicine, Division of Medicine, University College London, Department of Targeted Intervention, Division of Surgery and Interventional Science, University College London, Department of Surgery, Royal Alexandra Hospital, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, College of Medicine and Health, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, City Hospital, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Bristol Surgical Trials Centre, University of Bristol

Journal of Health Services Research & Policy

Published online on March 05, 2026

Abstract

Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, Ahead of Print.
ObjectiveInternational health systems had the opportunity to assess the resilience of core health services to severe disruption following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper examines the resilience of a core health service to shocks from COVID-...