Studies have shown that around one-third of health workers feel overwhelmed at work and that this is happening at least once per week. A large number of workers have said that they feel burnt out and that they are even considering a job change too. One-fifth of them are even considering leaving the care sector, according to a new survey. The survey has been carried out by Florence and this is a tech platform that helps to provide a lot of social care workers with the access they need to new shifts. They have worked with a lot of care workers so far but at the end of the day, the struggle is real. If you work as part of the nurse agency in your local area or if you are seeking work through a nursing recruitment agency, then you will know what a stressful time this is. Of course, if you are working with carers and if you are seeking care job s then the same concept applies.

The survey has highlighted a lot of fears and it has also shown that health and social workers are no longer getting access to the shifts that they need. Social care workers need to be supported as well. Lack of support when it comes to healthcare workers in general seems to be resulting in a mass burnout and this is the last thing that anybody needs. Of course, the healthcare sector is under a lot of stress at the end of the day but by the looks of things it looks like more has to be done to make sure that people are not missing out on crucial care when they just don’t have to. Who knows what the future holds, but right now, something has to be done.

It would seem that there have been a lot of staff shortages and that now community health services are in a particularly dire situation. Those who work in a nurse agency, in a nursing recruitment agency or even those who are seeking care jobs are particularly at risk of missing out on critical life-changing treatments. Of course, carers are also at risk, and this is not good to say the least.

The Pandemic

It would seem that the pandemic has really emphasised the amount of staff shortages that are happening and it would also seem that community staff have not been able to keep pace with the increase in demand either. This has left quite a few areas in a very dire situation, if you take a look at the report. Siobhan Melia who is the chair of the network has said that the waiting list when it comes to community services has to be a wake-up call and that people need to start taking the backlog of care more seriously than they are. These kinds of services really are not subject to the kind of scrutiny when you look at the waiting times in hospitals right now but at the end of the day, if no action is taken then it would seem that the size of the waiting list is only going to get bigger.
This is not good to say the least as it means that even more pressure is being put on NHS staff. Only time will tell what the future holds but at the end of the day, more has to be done to make sure that people are not missing out on the valuable care that they need. If this is not done, then there will be dire consequences.

RCN members in Scotland have chosen to reject the NHS pay deal. A lot of them have said that they are now backing the strike action and that the results are now showing that the industrial action could take place later on this year. If you work in an established nursing recruitment agency or if you’re seeking work through a nurse agency then you’ll know how frustrating it can be when the government do not offer pay deals that are good enough, but if people don’t stand out then this will put carers and even those who work in care jobs at a huge disadvantage.

The turnout for this actually went beyond 50% and this is the minimum required for the strike to go ahead and become legal. Members who are in Scotland are now being given the chance to vote in a statutory ballot and this is going to take place via post. This is required by the law if nursing staff want to be able to join the picket lines. The ballot was not indicative of any members and their general feelings to the pay offer, but it did happen to meet the various criteria that was required for the strike to become lawful. Anyone who is working with the NHS in Scotland are now going to be joining those in Wales and England. They are going to be doing what they can to vote and anyone who is eligible to vote should certainly do so. Nursing staff are not going to stop until they can get the fair treatment they are seeking, and this is only fair when you look at the hours that they put in to help those around them to heal and to take care of themselves.

Nurses who have long Covid are now being pushed to take ill health retirement. A campaign for Covid is now trying to raise concerns about the amount of nursing staff who have the condition, and they are also being asked to take IHR by their employees. In a lot of instances, this is happening even though there have not been any reasonable advances or regulations put into place. This is a complete betrayal at the end of the day and a lot of people think that it is also somewhat immoral. At the end of the day, it looks like a lot of the employers and the managers are choosing to push their staff into taking ill health retirement and this isn’t right at all. Under the ill health retirement, staff are given the green light if they want to take out their pension before they reach the age of 55. They can do this due to a medical disability, illness, sickness or anything else. Of course, eligibility for this is entirely dependent on a lot of factors. You have to make sure that you have an NHS pension and have been doing so for two years. You have to apply before you reach retirement age, and you also have to make sure that you have enough evidence to show that you are ill. After this point you cannot go on to seek care jobs, work as carers, go through a nursing recruitment agency or even sign up with a nurse agency. Although rules like this can be tough, it is important to make sure that everyone is given the support that they need and that those who need the help the most are getting it.

Those who have Covid are finally getting the help that they deserve.