Mansfield and Warsop MP Ben Bradley raised the problems with NHS staffing during a debate in the House of Commons yesterday on expanding the NHS workforce. The speech came during an opposition motion debate on the subject.
During his speech Mr Bradley highlighted the progress that has been made in improving the NHS workforce with there being over 37,000 more doctors, 45,000 more nurses, record levels of recruitment and record staff numbers in the NHS currently. This is coupled with record levels of funding for the NHS, even when adjusted for inflation. Another example of recent success when it comes to recruitment in the NHS that Ben raised in his speech is the 25% increase in the number of people studying Nursing.
Ben also highlighted the issue of PFI contracts and the effect these are still having on local NHS trusts, stating Kings Mill Hospital ‘spends 14% of its annual budget on repaying Labour’s PFI deal.’ The effect this has on the ability of the local NHS trust to care for patients was highlighted with the significant amount of money not being able to be used on delivering the frontline services the people of Mansfield need.
The issue of properly integrating care services and the NHS formed a key part of the speech , with Ben stating ‘I do not understand how we can discuss this issue without talking about care’. As leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, the MP for Mansfield is in the unique position that he is also responsible for delivering the County’s care services. As such, this allowed Mr Bradley to speak about how the disconnect between different NHS and care services increases the likelihood of people ending up backing in hospital, thereby putting more pressure on NHS staff.
Despite the NHS having the most funding and the most staff in its history, there is still a disconnect between this translating to people receiving everyday healthcare in a timely manner. Ben raised this point and noted the issue is not underfunding of the health service, but rather an exponential growth in demand and that we now expect the NHS to do things it was never set up to do. Mr Bradley stated ‘That is not possible or feasible when we have increasingly complex and expensive needs, an older population, more working-age disabled people, more lifelong and chronic illness and more mental ill health. The NHS was never set up to deal with that or the range and complexity of services, which were never envisaged.’
Ben further acknowledged that ‘we cannot continue to grow the health service forever…’ and called for a fundamental reform of the systems and processes that make up the NHS in order to make it sustainable for the future.
Commenting Ben Bradley stated:
‘The NHS is currently facing an unprecedented rise in demand and this is having implications for both the amazing staff who work in our NHS, and for patients who are finding it difficult to access services. As such, I was pleased to take the opportunity to raise issues with the NHS that have come to me locally, such as the enormous PFI debt that Kings Mill Hospital is still having to pay off.’
‘A key issue with the NHS at the moment is the lack of integration between the multiple different organisations that make up the NHS. The key to this integration with care services. I have seen first-hand that people often leave hospital, enter care settings only to then re-enter hospital within a short period. If these NHS and acre services can be properly integrated we can help reduce the backlog on NHS services and the pressures facing NHS staff in the longer term.’
‘It is however, important to note that the NHS is in fundamental reform and we cannot continue to grow the health service indefinitely. Currently, the NHS has record levels of funding and staff, yet my constituents get in touch detailing how long they have to wait to access NHS services. This shows that simply increasing funding or staff levels won’t solve the fundamental issues at the heart of our health service.’
