The RCN has warned various politicians, stating that they need to end the workforce crisis while also showing that the vacancies that are open right now are compromising care.

The Findings

The findings from the RCN employment survey show that nursing staff from up and down the UK are under an unreal amount of pressure. 6 out of 10 people have stated that they can’t provide the level of care that they want and that their patient happiness is being compromised as a result. The annual survey has been carried out since the year 1986 and it shows that not even a quarter of the respondents believe that their pay is good enough for the amount of responsibility that they have at work. 3 out of 10 have suffered some degree of physical abuse from their patients that this has all happened in the last year.

The survey has even shown that those who work as healthcare assistants are continually being asked to do the job of nurses. If you are part of a nurse agency or even a nursing recruitment agency, you will know what a drain this can be on resources. Of course, the election is not so far away now and Dame Donna Kinnair has stated that the survey should be read by all politicians. She said that the findings are doing more than just laying bare the serious consequences that happen to affect the nurses and even patients in the industry. Only time will tell if enough can be done to try and give people the support they need but ultimately this all comes down to a lack of funding. If people are not given the support they need then this causes additional stress and it puts more people under pressure, making the situation far worse than it needs to be.

People are calling upon all members of the RCN to see if they can vote in the upcoming election. They are doing this so that they can influence their PPCs in the run. The polling day is being held on the 12th of December. There has been an easy online tool put up and this allows people to quickly identify local candidates while also helping them to understand what they need to do. You will essentially need to demonstrate how committed you are to nursing by becoming a champion. When you do this, you essentially try and give nursing staff a voice in parliament.

This is so important if you work as a nurse agency or if you work in a nursing recruitment agency because if the NHS crisis isn’t solved soon then this will put pressure on everyone. Dame Donna Kinnair has released an email asking everyone to reach out to their local PPCs while also stating that the election really couldn’t be at a more critical time. There’s a mounting amount of pressure on the NHS and health and social care services are in need. Shifts are continually understaffed and the resources that are required to provide a healthy and safe service just are not present. If they are then they usually aren’t available and this is very bad news for the industry as a whole. Of course, the UK government need to take a degree of action so that they can change this. They also need to work hard so that they can meet the health and the wellbeing factors of those who are going to be the next generation.

Of course, it only takes a couple of minutes for you to email your PPC but when you do- you may find that you can make a huge difference.

The NHS England have published their statistics and they show that they have hit their worst level yet in terms of A&E waiting hours. The number of those waiting for emergency treatment for over 4 hours at a time has increased by over 15,000 since the previous month. The amount of people who were stuck on trolleys for 12 hours or more also increased too. At the end of the day, no politician wants to see a patient that is absolutely marooned on a trolley for more than 12 hours. This is exactly what is happening right now and it’s not acceptable at all. If you work in a nursing recruitment agency then you will know what a daunting statistic this is as so many nurses are so overworked. If you are part of a nurse agency then you will also know that those who do go to A&E are actually very sick, and that providing care is hard enough already. On top of that, they are also being forced to treat patients on chairs, on trolleys and even in makeshift areas of a hospital.

It’s really not a surprise that they don’t have enough beds when you look at the fact that they have 43,000 vacant positions in the UK. This is the highest number that the NHS have ever seen. The report is showing how much the government need to tackle the nursing crisis and it is also showing that they need to be investing much more in the next generation of nurses. If they don’t then the same problem is going to happen again and again, and this is not acceptable to say the least. Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done now.

The RCN are urging both patients and the public to sign a petition which calls upon the government to fix the workforce crisis that is happening right now in England. They have worked hard to launch an advertising campaign which has the ultimate goal of raising awareness for any nurse shortages that are happening. This is going to have an impact on both patients and their safety, which is a concern for those who work in a nurse agency or even those who are a part of a nursing recruitment agency. The adverts that have been released are trying to encourage people to sign a new petition which has been created by the RCN and by the looks of things, they aren’t improving.

There are almost 40,000 nursing posts that are vacant in the NHS right now and staffing gaps in care homes and even independent hospitals look to be taking a downward turn. The RCN’s own campaign is being launched on the World Health Organisation’s first Safety Day.

RCN’s own Dame Donna Kinnair has stated that now, it’s their plan to try and issue a stark warning for patient safety and the fact that it is being endangered by nursing shortages. They are calling on the public in England to fight for nurses and they are also encouraging them to sign the petition. They want to be able to invest in the future workforce and they also want to make it clear who is going to be responsible. The RCN ideally wants people to be accountable for nurse staffing at all levels and they also want to ensure that statutory bodies are going to be responsible for workforce planning too, and by the looks of things, they are gaining traction.

RCN members are working with HSC services and they are going to be balloted on industrial action. This happens to include strike action and even the nursing staffing crisis. This is fantastic news for those who work in a nurse agency or even those who work as part of a nursing recruitment agency. Of course, it’s important to know that this announcement comes at a time where there are 3,000 nursing posts across the system, and they have a similar level of vacancies. Of course, it’s important to note that pay for nursing staff within the health service sector continues to fall behind Scotland, England and Wales. The real value for pay in NI has fallen by a total of 15% when you look at the last few years and this is not good news at all.

Pat Cullen is the director of RCN and she has come out to say that the time has come where members are saying clearly that they can’t keep on working under the current conditions. They all know that the nurses in the North of Ireland can go anywhere they want to work. To this date, any discussions regarding pay have been unsuccessful and there is now nothing at all to keep any newly qualified nurses at home. When you look at the profession overall, you will soon see that it is no longer prepared to tolerate the risk that comes with low staffing levels. No nurse would ever want to take any kind of industrial action but that being said, they haven’t been left with much of a choice.

This marks a sad day for the North of Ireland, but is anything really going to change with this movement? Only time will tell.

Earlier this year, it would appear that 10,000 RCN members took action to try and demand that the government leaders and other parts of the healthcare system are made accountable for the workforce and planning supply in England. This was in response to a request that came from the NHS England and even the NHS improvement plan too.

They have very public views in regards to the changes in legislation and they have also stated that they are going to try and help the NHS to deliver their long-term plan.

Today, the two organisations have come to meet, and they are going to discuss the recommendations to the government themselves. This comes after thousands of emails from RCN members, and by the looks of things, they are finally listening. They are going to revisit with partners as to whether or not they are responsible in relation to the workforce.

The RCN Chief Executive Dame Donna Kinnair has stated that they are pleased that the NHS England have chosen to recognise concerns for RCN members and that they are also happy that the issue of accountability has remained in an area that needs to be resolved.

A week after, they then launched a major campaign and they called for investment in the nursing workforce. They also wanted to make accountability much more clarified in the law too. Yet again, this case is not going to be taken seriously.

They are seeing that the proposals on the health and care integration are a positive step and this should go a long way, but is it really enough? Dame Donna has chosen to sign a letter which is addressed to the Secretary of State. This is good news for those who are part of a nurse agency or even those who are signed up with a nursing recruitment agency.

A campaign has been launched with the intention of stopping inappropriate glove usage by staff. This has saved a trust that operates in London over £90,000. It has also prevented 18 tonnes of unnecessary waste. Staff who work at the Great Ormond Street hospital have seen a huge improvement since the project started and a lot of people have worked hard to try and embrace the new approach. Before this, the infection control audits often showed that clinical staff were not always complying with requirements. The trust, at the time were actually ordering over 200,000 pairs of gloves every single week. Those who work in a nursing recruitment agency will know how expensive this can be. If you work in a nurse agency, then you may also know how complex the regulations can sometimes be.

The campaign is called Gloves Off and they are focused on using non-sterile gloves. These should only be used by any healthcare professional when they are dealing with mucous membranes, body fluids or even blood. There has been an educational page developed for staff already and they are trying to advise as to when gloves should be worn and so that they can undertake a risk assessment too. One key part of the program is reminding staff that' gloves should never be worn for any routine examination and that they should not be used while administering any kind of intravenous medication either. The work that they are putting in has certainly helped them to achieve everything they have ever wanted, and it is a fantastic way for everyone to see how sometimes a small change can make a huge difference. The trust aren’t stopping there however because they are also working hard to make even more people see the fact that gloves are not always required.

A group of UK nurses have come forward to say that working in Cambodia is going to be a life-changing experience and that they have also been shaping the practice back home. The Transform Healthcare Cambodia take a group of nurses out a few times a year and they focus on going to South East Asian countries. They do this so that they can work with some of the local staff over there and so that they can also offer their own advice. They believe that it is quite life-changing that some of the nurses actually come out and that it has a huge impact on them as professionals. Those who work in a nursing recruitment agency or even a nurse agency will know more than anyone how beneficial trips like this are, and it is amazing to see how much work they are putting in. The charity also provide various opportunities for professionals from Cambodia to come to England too. They offer various study tours and they also give foreign workers the chance to see the NHS in action.

This is a very uplifting experience and it also helps them to focus more on developing their own careers. Sue Smith is a chief nurse and she works at the Morecambe Bay University. She is one of the charity founders and directors. She has admitted that it was a bit of a shock in terms of culture, for the UK workers going over there. This was especially the case when they visited the country, as the attack on the Khmer Rouge bridge saw the healthcare system completely destroyed. A lot of people work very hard to try and give people the support they need, and it is certainly enriching for people to be able to really see how things are changing for the better.

Politicians have all chosen to pack the RCN with their support for the health secretary. They want people to have legal accountability for the workforce and they also want to get some support with the planning and even supplementary care. For those who work in a nurse agency or even a nursing recruitment agency, this is great news to say the least.

The RCN has been hosting ongoing staffing campaigns and they have also tried to introduce very similar legislations in Scotland and Wales too. MPs in Westminster Hall have all shared stories from various constituents and they have also discussed their own experience when it comes to working with the NHS. They have voiced a greater level of support and they have also tried to display some amount of accountability. They want patients to feel safe and they also want the staff to feel secure too. Eleanor Smith who was chosen to lead the debate has stated that the vacancy rate right now has reached a very alarming level. Frontline staff are now propping up the system even though they have absolutely no assurance that the situation itself is going to be resolved. Staff are now starting to vote with their feet but there appears to be no accountability or even clarity so far. Karen Lee who is an MP has shared her own opinion and she believes that right now there is a significant shortage in staff. She hopes that the minister is listening and she wants someone to take notice of the situation right now. She wants to make sure that a solution is implemented and that it is both safe and effective, but right now there is no telling whether or not this is going to be the case.

Figures have been released today and they show that the number of students who have been accepted onto an undergraduate course do not meet the need for nurses in the future. The latest figures show that England is very far behind in terms of recruitment and that the number of nurses who are able to offer care do not meet the increasing need for patients. Those who work in a nurse agency or even in a nursing recruitment agency will know this more than anyone and it’s a sad sight to say the least. Sure, the numbers have increased by 4% last year but overall, they are still down by over 8% when you look at 2016. There are now 1,360 less people who have been accepted onto a course and this is not good news at all. Ministers have claimed that the reform for student funding is going to boost the numbers of student places and that this is also going to affect the industry in general. Ministers have claimed time and time again that student funding is going to be boosted if they are able to offer more variation in courses, but so far the efforts have been futile. More efforts need to be made to try and support those who want to study nursing as well as giving them a high degree of support throughout their training.

The government is being called upon to invest more in the industry because if nothing is done then this is not going to spell good news for the industry in general. Right now, it doesn’t look good and if the numbers continue to fall then this will make the situation in general even worse. All in all, only time will tell what is going to happen.