Professional bodies, trade unions, charities and the NHS Confederation have joined forces to urge Rishi Sunak to publish the long-awaited NHS workforce plan for healthcare in England.
Amid speculation that the Treasury and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) cannot agree on the scale of financial commitment required, 40 organisations, led by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP), have written to the prime minister warning that his promises to improve the NHS will not be met unless the workforce crisis is addressed.
The NHS workforce plan was originally earmarked for publication in spring 2022 but has still not been released, despite frequent references by the government that it is imminent.
A workforce plan by NHS England submitted to the DHSC in March said the health service has 154,000 fewer full-time staff than necessary and that by 2036 the shortfall could reach 571,000 full-time equivalents on current trends.
Media reports suggest there is a disagreement between the Treasury and the Department for Health and Social Care on the scale of the staffing needed for the NHS and other sectors.
Health secretary Steve Barclay has declined in recent interviews to provide a deadline for the NHS workforce plan’s publication, despite it widely being expected to be published this week.
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The letter makes clear that across all areas of the NHS, there are mass vacancies and insufficient numbers of staff to meet current and future needs.
CSP director of policy Rob Yeldham said: “Waiting lists are growing and needs are increasing all the time. The CSP estimates that an additional 12,000 physios are required to meet rehab needs.
“Every day of delay in committing to action to increase the rehab workforce extends waiting times for rehab for patients. We need the government to commit to a fully funded workforce plan now.”
The letter reads: “As organisations representing the health professions, patients, NHS staff and NHS organisations, we are dismayed at the continuing delay in publishing a funded health workforce plan for England. We urge you to act by publishing a sustainable plan immediately. None of your policy commitments on health can be achieved unless we address the chronic workforce shortage.”
It concludes: “Many of us have contributed to developing the workforce plan. We want it to succeed. We want to be able to welcome it if it provides the long-term vision needed and clearly commitments to funded workforce expansion. Please act now.”
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Signatories include Age UK, the British Medical Association, the Royal College of Midwives, the Stroke Association and Unison.
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