Doctors are struggling to give non-coronavirus patients the important care they need due to the pandemic, a survey suggests.

Thousands of doctors also said that Covid-19’s long-term impact on NHS demand was their biggest concern for the future, according to research by the British Medical Association (BMA).

More than half of the 16,000 members surveyed said the pandemic was worsening care for those without the disease, and nearly 30% said current conditions had left them without supplies, such as medications or oxygen.

The BMA council chairman says patients are being “neglected” and is concerned about a “surge in demand” as Covid cases begin to decline.

Dr. Chaand Nagpaul added: “Before the closure measures are eased, the Government has rightly insisted that the NHS must be able to cope.

“These results clearly show that this is not just about Covid, but also about a potential increase in other patients who may have postponed access to medical care or actually had treatment delayed.”

Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth asked ministers to “come up with a credible and funded plan to help the NHS prepare to meet this growing need.”

An NHS spokesman said the poll was a “sad statement of the obvious.”

“Like any other health service around the world, hospitals in this country have had to adapt quickly and decisively to confront the greatest threat to public health in more than a century.

“It is a source of pride for the NHS that every coronavirus patient in need of hospital care has been able to receive it, and NHS emergency services have been available to all patients, with or without Covid-19, throughout this pandemic.”