Rishi Sunak has been confronted by a 77-year-old NHS patient telling him he needs to "try harder" in a bruising encounter over nurses' pay.
In first visit since becoming Prime Minister, Mr Sunak was told by Londoner Catherine Poole: "You need to pay them."
The comments from Ms Poole, who is recovering from surgery at Croydon University Hospital, came as Mr Sunak also dodged a reporter's questions on nurses' pay.
As Mr Sunak crouched down to have a word with the 77-year-old patient, she could be heard giving Mr Sunak a short lecture over pay for nurses facing a real-terms cut.
The Prime Minister, wearing a mask, said the Government was trying, but she insisted: "You are not trying, you need to try harder."
Mr Sunak went on to say that the NHS was important and Ms Poole replied: "Yes, and look after it."
Thousands of nurses across the country are currently balloting on walk-outs, as healthcare workers call for a pay rise amid soaring inflation.
Earlier this month the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said it would ballot 300,000 NHS members - for the first time in its 106-year history.
The NHS could also be in line for a further tightening of budgets, as Chancellor Jeremy Hunt eyes ways to fill a multi-billion pound fiscal black hole.
In his appearance at the south London hospital, Mr Sunak also swerved a question about nurses' pay in a television interview after his encounter with Ms Poole.
Asked if he was happy that nurses are not getting a real-term increase in pay, he said on Friday: "It is brilliant to be here at Croydon Hospital, to see the great work of the doctors and nurses here.
"One of the priorities for my Government is going to be tackling the Covid backlogs and supporting the NHS.
"We face lots of challenges as a country, but I am confident that we can fix the economy and deliver on the promise of the 2019 manifesto, including having a stronger NHS."
Helga Pile of Unison last night said: "Patients like Catherine know NHS staff deserve better than they're getting from the Government."
Rachel Harrison, national secretary for the GMB union, which represents NHS staff from paramedics to porters, added: “No matter how much he pretends he isn’t, this Prime Minister is part of the same Tory administration that has crushed our health service.
"It’s no wonder patients want to give him a piece of their mind. Twelve years of Conservative cuts have seen our NHS completely ravaged.”
Earlier Mr Sunak also backtracked on a key policy he unveiled during the summer Tory leadership contest to fine patients who miss GP and hospital appointments £10 in a bid to tackle the record backlog.
He had argued it was "not right" that some patients were failing to turn up and "taking those slots away from people who need" them.
But health leaders and unions, including the British Medical Association, warned the plans would "make matters worse" and threaten the principle of free NHS care at the point of need.
But on Friday, a Downing Street spokeswoman said: "The PM wants to deliver a stronger NHS and the sentiment remains that people should not be missing their appointments and taking up NHS time.
"But we have listened to GPs and health leaders and have acknowledged that now is not the right time to take this policy forward."
Mr Sunak received a more positive reaction from other patients. At one bed, 46-year-old Sreeja Gopalan told him: "I am waiting to see you."
"I am proud of you," she said, as she took a selfie with the Prime Minister.
