Responding to the Health and Social Care Committee's report on the health and care workforce, RCN Director for England, Patricia Marquis, said:
“The findings of the Committee show in the starkest of detail the workforce crisis across the whole of health and social care in England. That persistent understaffing in all care settings poses a serious risk to staff and patient safety should shock ministers into action.
“As ministers continue to make claims about the number of new nurses, evidence submitted to the Committee found a significant lack of transparency on workforce planning and in fact that 475,000 jobs will be needed in health and an extra 490,000 jobs in social care by the early part of the next decade just to keep up with patient need.
“On pay the Committee was very clear saying it is unacceptable that some NHS nurses are struggling to feed their families, pay their rent, and travel to work. Their recommendation that nursing staff should be given a pay rise that takes account of the cost of living crisis should make government rethink the latest pay deal that follows a decade of real terms pay cuts that will force even more to leave the profession.”
Ends
Notes to editors
Workforce: recruitment, training and retention in health and social care - read the report here
Expert Panel: evaluation of Government’s commitments in the area of the health and social care workforce in England - read the report here
