Nursing is on an unsustainable path
Nurses have long held a special place in British society, so much so that they even featured in the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics. But the golden era of nursing, typified by matron, sister and the Carry on Doctor films, has passed. They are more professionalised than they used to be, as a result of the introduction of university courses to replace in-hospital schools.
Nurses emerge from university with significant debt and a sense of performing tasks that can be onerous and under-rewarded compared to others with degrees. There is a record shortage of nurses, with vacancies approaching 40,000 at a time when the NHS is in acute crisis, partially as a result of too few beds and medical staff. As in the past, we seek to replenish our nursing numbers by depleting other countries – often developing nations – of theirs. Furthermore, some nurses regard themselves as specialists and much of what was previously regarded as “nursing work” – personal care such as washing, feeding and even recording observations – is now relegated to care assistants.
It is impossible for this state of affairs to continue. The nurses say one answer is to pay them substantially more, thereby improving morale and ensuring retention, though it is by no means clear that even the pay rise sought by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will help achieve either. A pay offer from the Government and recommended by the RCN for acceptance was rejected by a majority of its voting members – although health-service staff, including nurses, belonging to Unison have accepted the offer of 5 per cent and a one-off payment.
The RCN nurses look increasingly isolated. Pat Cullen, the union’s general secretary, said the strikes could carry on until Christmas; but if they are waiting for a Labour government to arrive in office to meet their demands, they will be disappointed. Wes Streeting, the Opposition spokesman, said he did not support an escalation of the strikes because of the impact on patient safety, which surely should be paramount, not a secondary consideration for the unions.
In the next round of strikes not even emergency care is being guaranteed. If both major parties are unhappy, perhaps they could look again at the structure of nurse training and return to the old system of apprenticeships, with students paid to learn on the job, rather than being required to lay out a small fortune in tuition fees.
