The Government and NHS will unveil a revised plan to tackle the “crisis” in the NHS workforce, following the publication of the new 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS which is due in spring. The focus will be in-line with one of the three “big shifts” the Government has set out for the NHS – shifting care from hospitals and into the community.
Too much care is being delivered in hospitals because of historic underinvestment in the community. Among the statistics revealed by recent data: the UK has almost 16% fewer fully qualified GPs than other high income countries relative to population, and between 2019 and 2023 there has been a reduction of both nurses working in the community (at least 5%) and health visitors (20%). The number of mental health nurses has just returned to its 2010 level.
The original workforce plan would increase hospital consultants by 49%, but the equivalent rise in fully qualified GPs would have been just 4% between 2021/22 and 2036/37.
The refreshed workforce plan, alongside reform and investment, aims to ensure the right workforce is in the right place at the right time to deliver the 10 Year Health Plan. It will be refreshed every two years.
Amanda Pritchard, Chief Executive of NHS England, says: “While the NHS is delivering more care to patients in the community, with the expansion of virtual wards, community diagnostic centres and neighbourhood hubs, part of our longer term goal is delivering even more care out of hospitals, and we’ll work closely with the Government to refresh the workforce plan, alongside the upcoming 10 Year Health Plan.”
Bolstering primary to reduce A&E pressures
The proportion of the total NHS budget dedicated to acute hospitals has continued to rise, while the proportion going to primary care has fallen by a quarter in just over a decade – from 24% in 2009 to just 18% by 2021. Despite this significant flow of resources into hospitals, output has not risen at nearly the same rate, and NHS productivity has still not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
It is understandable that patients who are unable to access a GP appointment, present at A&E, putting more pressure on overstretched emergency departments. At a typical A&E on a typical evening in 2009, there would have been just under 40 people waiting in the queue. By 2024, that had swelled to more than 100 people.
