RCN: cutting jobs damages patient care

Published: 22 August 2012

You cannot cut nursing posts without damaging patient care, the Royal College of Nursing has said.

The comments were made in response to the publication of the NHS Information Centre workforce statistics, which reveal that the number of qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff has fallen by over 4,800 since April 2010.

RCN Chief Executive & General Secretary Dr Peter Carter said the NHS should pursue better planned, managed and designed services which keep people as well as possible and out of hospital.

“Our members tell us every day about a health service which could easily buckle under the strain of delivering more care with fewer staff. Cutting staff is a short-sighted and ultimately futile way of attempting to save money, as patients can end up waiting longer and being more seriously ill by the time they are treated,” he added.

The RCN will continue to oppose job cuts locally and nationally on behalf of RCN members and the patients they care for.