Under a new plan unveiled by the government on Friday to address a persistent lack of doctors and nurses, the National Health Service in England will hire more than 300,000 staff.
A manpower gap of 360,000 is anticipated for the publicly-funded NHS by 2037 as a result of an aging population, a dearth of domestically trained health professionals, and issues retaining current personnel. The NHS turns 75 on Wednesday.
As part of the government's long-term workforce strategy, less time would be spent in medical school by doctors, and more professionals would be trained locally.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said, “On the 75th anniversary of our health service, this government is making the largest single expansion in NHS education and training in its history.
“In the coming years we will train twice the number of doctors and an extra 24,000 more nurses a year, helping to cut waiting lists and improve patient care.
“We will do more to retain our brilliant NHS staff and reform the way the health system works to ensure it is fit for the future,” he added.
NHS England is now working to replace 112,000 open positions as a result of the significant number of workers leaving the service.
Over the past year, the NHS has experienced unheard-of strikes, with staff members complaining of being underpaid and overworked as they battle to clear the backlog brought on by coronavirus lockdowns.
By 2037, according to the government's proposal, the NHS may have 60,000 more doctors, 170,000 more nurses, and 71,000 more medical workers.
According to the NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard.“The publication of our first-ever NHS long-term workforce plan now gives us a once-in-a-generation opportunity to put staffing on sustainable footing for the years to come,”
“As we look to adapt to new and rising demand for health services globally, this long-term blueprint is the first step in a major and much-needed expansion of our workforce to ensure we have the staff we need to deliver for patients.”
