Nurses taken off skills shortage list

I think in general the NHS are reluctant to employ enough staff to do anything in the useful parts, whereas excess management seems to be abundant.

However, I know there is a Chief Executive post going at a local hospital trust if anyone wants a £140,000 pay packet!

How can there be no shortage of nurses when nurses have, by your admission, too many patients to look after?  Surely the appalling ratio shows exactly why there needs to be more nurses?

Hmmm.


Vicky

There is a large number of people that are qualified nurses that do not work in healthcare.  They will not. 

In addition to that the hospitals are very strict about only having as small a number of nurses on a ward at a time.   We are only allowed (by the managers) to have 2 RN's on the ward (30 patients) at a time.    If they had 5 nurses that were available to work a shift, they would only allow 2 to work that shift in order to save money.   People get sick of working with those kinds of ratios and quit.  More nurses are leaving the NHS than are coming in to it.   Many of them are taking on lower paying jobs just to get away from the stress of nursing.

Our most recent nursing grads from University of York cannot find jobs.   The hospital I work for has frozen the recruitment of nurses.  The only people they will hire are healthcare assistants. 

There are enough people qualified as nurses in the UK to take care of all of the sick people.   I read somewhere that the vast majority of people who have become nurses have left the profession.  These people are still technically nurses, even if they are now working as teachers or psychologists or at the flower shop.

Did I explain it better?

Yep, got it, thanks.

Vicky

The Agenda for Change which the NHS are currently running isn't helping either, there is a lot of arguements between the bandings for different trusts.

probably part of the reason the nurses leave the profession here in uk is that the  pay is really bad.

The low pay doesn't bother me as much as the working conditions do.  There is also a huge lack of respect for nurses.  I have always said that people here cannot differentiate between a care assistant, home help and an actual nurse.   

Underpaid and overworked.

Of the two nurses I know, one is now an accountant, and the other is doing agency work, cos the pay is better and he doesn't have to do nights.

This will come and smack the government in the face in a year or two, when even more nurses leave the NHS.

Are you all *really* sure you want to live here?


Vicky

I beg to differ there is a shortage of nursing in the U.K. thats the reason why the U.K had to import from other countries   even though they maybe substandard I.E. the filipines.   Problem with nursing is the high drop out rate between 20 to 50% get cut.  Takes you 4 years to graduate.  There not enough instructors to teach the required courses, its not like anyone can do it.  What people realize is that nurses are the ones that keep you alive not doctors.  A hospital can survive without doctors, but it can't survive without nurses

Whilst I am greatful for the NHS System and have had to use it when I was really sick, Pnumoina(sorry can't spell it) Sonya had to stay with me and do everything for me as there where about 2 nurses during the day and 2 at night, 2 auxilliarys that could not even offer me a cup to spit into when I was choking I nearly died, Sonya went around the corner to our house to shower and change clothes thank god she came back when she did, it took her 20 minutes and when she got back and helped me suction a nurse still had not shown up, I wouldnot have been able to eat as I can't feed myself I could not turn over I could not sit up ect and no one helped me except Sonya they gave me introv meds and other fluids, and none of the nurses bar 1 talked English well and with my accent we could not understand each other it was a nightmare, an old man in the bed opposite fell out of bed someone had forgot to put his bars up on his bed and Sonya sat with him for 20 minutes buzzing for someone to come and help him and no one told his wife the next day, I signed myself out and came home as soon as I got the drips out and was taking oral meds, the man bought in as I left died the next day, Sonya is friends with his grand daughter, and what can I say, its not the nurses fault its the managers none of this would have happened if there had been more qualified staff or the auxillaries could do more than rush off to get a nurse who was dealing with 2 wards not just one. I was so scared and so was Sonya we new how serious the pnomonia was and it was my second in 3 months so I was very lucky I might not have been here if Sonya had not stayed and looked after me and checked my meds and all that stuff I was safer at home.

I support the work the nurses do but the hospitals need to cut the managers and start employing more.

Indy and Sonya

I beg to differ there is a shortage of nursing in the U.K.

Are you really taking me up on an opinion I expressed two years ago?

 

However...I think that you need to look at the Home Office's own guidelines to see if *they* think that nursing is a shortage skill.  I agree that the drop out rate is a massive problems, which is why senior and specialist nursing is considered shortage, but junior posts are not.

Vicky

LOL, Well at least people are still reading and nothing has changed in 2 years really,
and I have to say I for one did not notice the year on the post but its still good.

Indy

This email from the Migration Advisory Committee Secretariat received today...

Thank you for your contribution to the Migration Advisory Committee’s call for evidence which we took into account when preparing our shortage occupation lists.

Our report which includes the shortage occupation lists for the UK and Scotland is being published on Tuesday 9 September and will be available on our web site www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/mac sometime after 10.30am on that day.

If you would like to receive a hard copy of the report in the post please let me know.

That means the whole shebang should be mounted on the site tomorrow, say lunch time.  I don't need a hard-copy of the report, but if somebody is dying to get one, I suppose you can write to the MAC and ask for one.  It will be the same thing as what's on the net. 

Are you really taking me up on an opinion I expressed two years ago?

 

However...I think that you need to look at the Home Office's own guidelines to see if *they* think that nursing is a shortage skill.  I agree that the drop out rate is a massive problems, which is why senior and specialist nursing is considered shortage, but junior posts are not.

Vicky

urghhh not to start a war or anything but  nursing shortage is not something that appears overnight nor can the problem be solved overnight.  The status of the U.K  nursing situation has been on going for more than 2 years and still remains understaff.  The problem with Home Office guidelines are that, they are the ones that are creating the rules," just because you say it so doesn't mean its so" sort of thing.  Its like letting the wolf keep an eye on the sheep.  The goverment runs the health system, and they don't want to fork out anymore money for nurses, because the current system is constantly in the red.  If you go into any hospital today you will find out that the nurse to patient ratio is one that is not humanly impossible to provide close to adequate care,  I'm sure there have been more than a few deaths as a result of inadequate care.  Those deaths don't really count as long as it makes sense from a dollar and cents stand point.

I agree.  But I am not talking about a general shortage...I am talking about the Home Office official shortage list.  So, please don't have a go at me, have a go at the Home Office.  No point in telling me!

Vicky