Thousands of newly qualified nurses are facing unemployment because of hospital cutbacks, with vacancies at their lowest for 10 years - reports the Daily Telegraph.
New NHS Vacancy survey figures have revealed how difficult it is for nurses, physiotherapists, scientists and doctors to find jobs.
The highest vacancy rate was among consultants, with 1.2% of jobs empty compared with 0.4% in trainee nursing.
There are currently 5,000 newly qualified nurses who cannot find a job and half of the 2,413 newly qualified physiotherapists have not found permanent posts.
More than 20,000 jobs have been cut in recent years as managers struggle to bring NHS finances back into balance.
Dr Peter Carter, the general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: "This is not a 'good news' story for nurses.
''Vacancy rates appear to have reached their lowest levels for years but we fear that has been achieved only by widespread freezing and deleting of posts by NHS trusts desperate to balance the books.
"Thousands of newly qualified nurses - costing taxpayers millions of pounds to train - cannot find jobs this year yet at the same time the workload on the wards and in the community remains high.
"It's time for the Government to put in place a long-term workforce strategy that prevents the feast or famine characteristic of the NHS job market in recent years."
Showing posts with label nurses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nurses. Show all posts
Friday, 24 August 2007
Tuesday, 17 April 2007
Nurse redundancy figures revealed
Twenty-three hospital nurses were made redundant in the North West in the last six months, reports the BBC.
As well as the nurses, 113 managers, 29 clerical workers, seven therapists and two healthcare scientists also lost their jobs, NHS North West said.
On Monday, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) claimed about 22,000 UK posts had been lost because of NHS cuts.
Speaking at the RCN's annual conference, Dr Peter Carter, general secretary, said the NHS was having the "life squeezed out of it" by deficit-imposed cuts.
The figures released by NHS North West concern the actual number of people made redundant since October 2006, rather than NHS posts.
The health authority said some redundancies in Greater Manchester were as a result of the move towards more community-based services.
Others were through some hospitals making efficiency savings as part of a drive to become financially stable, it said.
By the end of February 2007, a total of 174 staff out of 203,456 in the NHS in the North West had lost their jobs.
NHS North West covers 66 hospital and primary care trusts in the region.
As well as the nurses, 113 managers, 29 clerical workers, seven therapists and two healthcare scientists also lost their jobs, NHS North West said.
On Monday, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) claimed about 22,000 UK posts had been lost because of NHS cuts.
Speaking at the RCN's annual conference, Dr Peter Carter, general secretary, said the NHS was having the "life squeezed out of it" by deficit-imposed cuts.
The figures released by NHS North West concern the actual number of people made redundant since October 2006, rather than NHS posts.
The health authority said some redundancies in Greater Manchester were as a result of the move towards more community-based services.
Others were through some hospitals making efficiency savings as part of a drive to become financially stable, it said.
By the end of February 2007, a total of 174 staff out of 203,456 in the NHS in the North West had lost their jobs.
NHS North West covers 66 hospital and primary care trusts in the region.
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Monday, 16 April 2007
Stoke: 'Morale low' at job cuts hospital
Morale is low among staff at a debt-hit Staffordshire hospital which has cut 800 jobs, says the Royal College of Nursing.
The BBC reports RCN representative Elaine Twigg saying that NHS cuts in the West Midlands region had been among the biggest in England.
She said: "It makes it very difficult when I speak to others and they say they're having a hard time as well.
The University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust made the cuts in an effort to reduce a £17m deficit.
Ms Twigg, who is attending the RCN conference in Harrogate, added: "I know morale is very low throughout the country, and certainly in our hospital it is very low, so we will wait and see whether this manages to improve things."
The hospital has also closed 145 beds as part of its cost-cutting measures and has said more post closures are possible.
The BBC reports RCN representative Elaine Twigg saying that NHS cuts in the West Midlands region had been among the biggest in England.
She said: "It makes it very difficult when I speak to others and they say they're having a hard time as well.
The University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust made the cuts in an effort to reduce a £17m deficit.
Ms Twigg, who is attending the RCN conference in Harrogate, added: "I know morale is very low throughout the country, and certainly in our hospital it is very low, so we will wait and see whether this manages to improve things."
The hospital has also closed 145 beds as part of its cost-cutting measures and has said more post closures are possible.
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Cuts 'squeezing life out of NHS'
The NHS is having the "life squeezed out of it" by cuts imposed because of deficits, says the UK's nurse leader - according to the BBC.
Dr Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, congratulated ministers for tripling the health budget since 1997.
But he warned the progress made was at risk of being reversed as wards are closed, jobs lost and services slashed.
Nurses called for the law to be changed to introduce guaranteed nurse/patient ratios as a way of preventing cuts.
Speaking at the RCN's annual conference in Harrogate, Lothian nurse Geoff Earl said evidence had shown death rates increased by a third if the number of patients per nurse increased from four to eight.
"The lower the ratio the lower the rates of urinary tract infection and pneumonia," he said.
"It also improves recruitment and retention, reduces the use of agency staff and leads to less staff sickness. So it also makes financial sense - in the long term."
David Dawes, part of the RCN's body for nurses in senior management, said he supported the move as it would make many of the recent cuts - the RCN estimates over 22,000 post have been lost in the last 18 months - illegal.
And Lisa Leicester, a community mental health nurse from Gloucestershire, added: "Lets ensure appropriate staffing levels but also appropriately qualified nurses."
The debate came after the RCN's new leader set out the "tough" times the NHS was facing.
The former NHS trust chief executive, who took up the post in January, said: "Training budgets are being raided and public health programmes are being targeted.
"We've got workloads going through the roof as jobs are lost and vacancies frozen."
NHS trusts are making cuts in a bid to balance their books after racking up over £500m of deficits last year.
Alluding to recent press reports, Dr Carter said it had got so bad that nurses were being asked to work for nothing and cutting down on the use of lightbulbs.
He also strongly criticised this year's 2.5% pay rise for nurses, describing the award as "shameful".
Dr Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, congratulated ministers for tripling the health budget since 1997.
But he warned the progress made was at risk of being reversed as wards are closed, jobs lost and services slashed.
Nurses called for the law to be changed to introduce guaranteed nurse/patient ratios as a way of preventing cuts.
Speaking at the RCN's annual conference in Harrogate, Lothian nurse Geoff Earl said evidence had shown death rates increased by a third if the number of patients per nurse increased from four to eight.
"The lower the ratio the lower the rates of urinary tract infection and pneumonia," he said.
"It also improves recruitment and retention, reduces the use of agency staff and leads to less staff sickness. So it also makes financial sense - in the long term."
David Dawes, part of the RCN's body for nurses in senior management, said he supported the move as it would make many of the recent cuts - the RCN estimates over 22,000 post have been lost in the last 18 months - illegal.
And Lisa Leicester, a community mental health nurse from Gloucestershire, added: "Lets ensure appropriate staffing levels but also appropriately qualified nurses."
The debate came after the RCN's new leader set out the "tough" times the NHS was facing.
The former NHS trust chief executive, who took up the post in January, said: "Training budgets are being raided and public health programmes are being targeted.
"We've got workloads going through the roof as jobs are lost and vacancies frozen."
NHS trusts are making cuts in a bid to balance their books after racking up over £500m of deficits last year.
Alluding to recent press reports, Dr Carter said it had got so bad that nurses were being asked to work for nothing and cutting down on the use of lightbulbs.
He also strongly criticised this year's 2.5% pay rise for nurses, describing the award as "shameful".
NHS care 'left to student nurses'
The BBC reports today on a study showing that lives are being put at risk because student nurses are being left on their own with patients.
A poll by the Royal College of Nursing of 1,500 student nurses found nearly half had been left unattended with patients without warning.
Guidelines say student nurses should always be monitored except those in their final year and even that has to be prearranged.
The survey showed 44% of student nurses had been left unattended without warning and without a doctor or qualified nurse present.
Eight in 10 of those said it had happened on at least three occasions.
Of the 553 first-year students questioned, 42% said they had been left on their own.
And 15% said they had witnessed adverse events while left unattended.
Gill Robertson, the RCN's student nurses adviser, said there were reports of students just eight weeks into their training being left alone.
She said this could happen on surgical wards and other areas of a hospital where patients were extremely ill.
She added nurses were being stretched because of the cuts being made - the RCN estimates over 22,000 health staff posts have been lost in the last 18 months.
And another survey of nurses working in 173 hospital wards revealed a third of nurses thought patient care was being compromised on each shift because of reduced staffing.
RCN general secretary Peter Carter agreed the financial problems in the NHS were to blame for the problem
"Those registered nurses left have to do ever more with even fewer resources."
Mr Carter also said he was concerned by the reports of student nurses not being able to get jobs once they had qualified.
"I am hearing worrying stories from nurses who qualified last September who are still unable to get jobs because trusts are freezing entry levels posts to save money."
Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "This is extremely worrying - patients' lives could be at risk.
"The damaging deficits in the health service not only result in job losses but have a serious impact on the remaining workforce."
A poll by the Royal College of Nursing of 1,500 student nurses found nearly half had been left unattended with patients without warning.
Guidelines say student nurses should always be monitored except those in their final year and even that has to be prearranged.
The survey showed 44% of student nurses had been left unattended without warning and without a doctor or qualified nurse present.
Eight in 10 of those said it had happened on at least three occasions.
Of the 553 first-year students questioned, 42% said they had been left on their own.
And 15% said they had witnessed adverse events while left unattended.
Gill Robertson, the RCN's student nurses adviser, said there were reports of students just eight weeks into their training being left alone.
She said this could happen on surgical wards and other areas of a hospital where patients were extremely ill.
She added nurses were being stretched because of the cuts being made - the RCN estimates over 22,000 health staff posts have been lost in the last 18 months.
And another survey of nurses working in 173 hospital wards revealed a third of nurses thought patient care was being compromised on each shift because of reduced staffing.
RCN general secretary Peter Carter agreed the financial problems in the NHS were to blame for the problem
"Those registered nurses left have to do ever more with even fewer resources."
Mr Carter also said he was concerned by the reports of student nurses not being able to get jobs once they had qualified.
"I am hearing worrying stories from nurses who qualified last September who are still unable to get jobs because trusts are freezing entry levels posts to save money."
Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "This is extremely worrying - patients' lives could be at risk.
"The damaging deficits in the health service not only result in job losses but have a serious impact on the remaining workforce."
Sunday, 15 April 2007
Nurse union condemns NHS job cuts
Nurses' leaders say patients are being harmed by job cuts in the profession caused by continuing NHS deficits, the BBC reports.
The Royal College of Nursing, whose conference opened on Sunday, claims that 22,300 NHS posts have been lost in England in the past 18 months.
Specialist nurses are said to have been particularly hard hit.
In its report Our NHS - Today and Tomorrow, the union said the health service was facing a debt crisis that was "real and entrenched".
The RCN study, compiled from reports by members and NHS board papers, said trusts had been forced to shed 22,300 posts through a combination of redundancies, recruitment freezes and post closures.
The financial crisis was also hitting patient care, the study claimed.
However the Department of Health claimed that the actual number of compulsory redundancies was 1,446 - of which only 303 were clinical positions, such as doctors or nurses.
RCN general secretary Dr Peter Carter said he stood by the RCN's figures.
"The deficits issue is not history - it is real, entrenched and continues to hit patient care, services and jobs.
"Yes, the NHS achieved overall financial balance last year - but at what cost?"
He added: "This is hitting services, hurting patients, undermining staff morale and threatening the hard-won progress made over recent years."
The RCN claims specialist nurses, which have been trained to provide expert care in areas such as diabetes and heart disease and have a range of enhanced powers like prescribing, had been particularly effected.
A poll of 807 specialist nurses for the report found one in five were facing a risk of redundancy, while half were aware of cuts in their specialist area.
June James, who has been working as a specialist diabetes nurse for the last 12 years, said: "Posts are being downgraded and services cut. I think it shows a lack of respect for the job we do."
Michael Summers, from the Patients Association, told BBC Five Live that callers to his organisation's helpline said there were "not enough nurses to go round" and patients were "in fear of infections".
"What is clear is that those who leave are not being replaced," he said.
The RCN, which represents 400,000 nurses, published its report to kick start its annual conference in Harrogate.
The Royal College of Nursing, whose conference opened on Sunday, claims that 22,300 NHS posts have been lost in England in the past 18 months.
Specialist nurses are said to have been particularly hard hit.
In its report Our NHS - Today and Tomorrow, the union said the health service was facing a debt crisis that was "real and entrenched".
The RCN study, compiled from reports by members and NHS board papers, said trusts had been forced to shed 22,300 posts through a combination of redundancies, recruitment freezes and post closures.
The financial crisis was also hitting patient care, the study claimed.
However the Department of Health claimed that the actual number of compulsory redundancies was 1,446 - of which only 303 were clinical positions, such as doctors or nurses.
RCN general secretary Dr Peter Carter said he stood by the RCN's figures.
"The deficits issue is not history - it is real, entrenched and continues to hit patient care, services and jobs.
"Yes, the NHS achieved overall financial balance last year - but at what cost?"
He added: "This is hitting services, hurting patients, undermining staff morale and threatening the hard-won progress made over recent years."
The RCN claims specialist nurses, which have been trained to provide expert care in areas such as diabetes and heart disease and have a range of enhanced powers like prescribing, had been particularly effected.
A poll of 807 specialist nurses for the report found one in five were facing a risk of redundancy, while half were aware of cuts in their specialist area.
June James, who has been working as a specialist diabetes nurse for the last 12 years, said: "Posts are being downgraded and services cut. I think it shows a lack of respect for the job we do."
Michael Summers, from the Patients Association, told BBC Five Live that callers to his organisation's helpline said there were "not enough nurses to go round" and patients were "in fear of infections".
"What is clear is that those who leave are not being replaced," he said.
The RCN, which represents 400,000 nurses, published its report to kick start its annual conference in Harrogate.
Saturday, 3 March 2007
NHS staff protest over job cuts
Health workers have been holding marches and rallies to protest about cuts to NHS jobs and services, and below-inflation pay increases - according to the BBC.
Demonstrations took place in a number of towns and cities, including London, Manchester, Preston, Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield and Belfast.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber - who spoke in Sheffield - said there was "real concern" about NHS policies. "Obviously there are immediate pressures with cuts and jobs disappearing, wards closing in too many trusts," he said.
"People not able to find jobs when they've completed their training - nurses, physiotherapists. So all of those kinds of problems."
The events were co-ordinated by NHS Together, an alliance of unions and NHS staff organisations.
Dr Peter Carter, of the Royal College of Nursing, said nurses were "angry and upset" over a number of issues.
He told BBC News 24: "Over the last year or so nurses have seen jobs frozen, redundancies, services closed, wards closed, student nurses not being able to get jobs on finishing their training, which is a pretty depressing state of affairs.
"And then you've had on Thursday the announcement by the government that they were not going to fully implement the recommendations of the pay review body that nurses should get 2.5%.
"And so it's a combination of both of these things have led to an extremely frustrated nursing workforce."
Demonstrations took place in a number of towns and cities, including London, Manchester, Preston, Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield and Belfast.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber - who spoke in Sheffield - said there was "real concern" about NHS policies. "Obviously there are immediate pressures with cuts and jobs disappearing, wards closing in too many trusts," he said.
"People not able to find jobs when they've completed their training - nurses, physiotherapists. So all of those kinds of problems."
The events were co-ordinated by NHS Together, an alliance of unions and NHS staff organisations.
Dr Peter Carter, of the Royal College of Nursing, said nurses were "angry and upset" over a number of issues.
He told BBC News 24: "Over the last year or so nurses have seen jobs frozen, redundancies, services closed, wards closed, student nurses not being able to get jobs on finishing their training, which is a pretty depressing state of affairs.
"And then you've had on Thursday the announcement by the government that they were not going to fully implement the recommendations of the pay review body that nurses should get 2.5%.
"And so it's a combination of both of these things have led to an extremely frustrated nursing workforce."
Thursday, 27 April 2006
Angry nurses drown out minister
Infuriated nurses stopped Patricia Hewitt in her tracks yesterday as they interrupted her speech and demanded their voices be heard.
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Health Secretary, who was addressing the Royal College of Nursing conference in Bournemouth, had been met by more than 2,000 stony faces, a sea of white and yellow campaign T-shirts, and a welcome somewhere between cool and frigid.
"Put your speech away," shouted the nurses as Miss Hewitt, almost repeating the address she had made to Unison in Monday, said she would help any nurses made redundant to get new jobs. "Where? Where?" they yelled.
About 15 minutes into her speech, the nurses, who had already interrupted her with derisive laughter, cries of "rubbish", "resign" and the stamping of hundreds of feet, had finally had enough.
There would be more arguments and controversy in the coming year, Miss Hewitt was saying as the shouting spread, the crescendo of stamping grew, and she was finally drowned out.
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Health Secretary, who was addressing the Royal College of Nursing conference in Bournemouth, had been met by more than 2,000 stony faces, a sea of white and yellow campaign T-shirts, and a welcome somewhere between cool and frigid.
"Put your speech away," shouted the nurses as Miss Hewitt, almost repeating the address she had made to Unison in Monday, said she would help any nurses made redundant to get new jobs. "Where? Where?" they yelled.
About 15 minutes into her speech, the nurses, who had already interrupted her with derisive laughter, cries of "rubbish", "resign" and the stamping of hundreds of feet, had finally had enough.
There would be more arguments and controversy in the coming year, Miss Hewitt was saying as the shouting spread, the crescendo of stamping grew, and she was finally drowned out.
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