Rising pressures on staff could further weaken a depleted workforce. The government’s obduracy over pay is irresponsible
Hospitals are crammed full of patients, the staffing crisis in adult social care continues to escalate, and alarming numbers of junior doctors report that they are planning to quit their NHS posts to work abroad. The multiple problems confronting the UK’s health and care system are interconnected and have been years in the making. While the pandemic exacerbated many of them, hugely increasing pressures on staff, political failures and, above all, a lack of investment are making it impossible for the service to stand still this winter – let alone recover.
The alarming but very real prospect is that things could get worse. In a Christmas message to staff, the chief executive of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, said she always worried that “ongoing pressures … could be even tougher” to cope with than Covid. Such fears appear prescient. With figures showing 13,697 inpatients ready to be discharged but with nowhere to go in November, and more strikes expected, Rishi Sunak’s government appears committed to a course of action designed to maximise conflict and disruption.
