A record high of unfilled nursing and midwifery posts is creating a staffing crisis for the NHS, it has been claimed.
Two Fife MSPs have called for action on recruitment and retention after new figures show higher vacancy numbers.
But the Scottish Government says there’s a record high number of staff in the NHS.
We take a look at the figures and find out what both sides are saying.
The number of unfilled NHS nursing and midwifery vacancies were published by NHS Education for Scotland.
They were widely reported as a “record high” topping previous numbers and rising by 900 in the last three months of 2021 alone.
What do the figures show?
The statistics released on unfilled posts show:
- Across Scotland, 6,674 nursing and midwifery posts are vacant
- NHS Fife has 575 vacant nursing and midwifery posts
- That represents 13% of posts in Fife
Fife MSPs Alex Rowley and Murdo Fraser have both called on the Scottish Government for action.
Interestingly, when we asked the Scottish Government for their response, they say it’s NHS Scotland staffing numbers that have reached a record high.
They state there’s:
- An increase of over 7,600 whole time equivalent NHS staff in the last year
- Record high levels of nursing and midwifery staff
And a spokesperson from the Government told us: “Creating new posts is an essential part of workforce expansion.
“Some new vacancies are expected as we work to rapidly grow our workforce.”
‘Perfect storm’
Mr Rowley says he raised the issue of unfilled posts with NHS Fife last December when there were 342 nursing and midwifery vacancies.
“This was also a record high at the time. Now that figure has jumped to 575 vacancies.
“Our NHS is facing a perfect storm of staffing problems.
“It needs direct action from the Scottish Government to address the problems of recruitment and retention.”
Mr Rowley adds he’s calling for a commitment to guarantee safe staffing levels in health and care services as well as a fair pay rise for nursing staff.
Murdo Fraser MSP believes part of the reason for record number of nursing vacancies lies with Nicola Sturgeon.
Mr Fraser says: “Part of this problem was caused when Nicola Sturgeon cut the number of student nurses when she was Health Secretary.
“The fact of the matter is the student nursing and midwifery intake fell by a fifth during this period from 2007 to 2012.
“It is no surprise we are seeing these shocking figures for nursing posts not being filled – we basically aren’t getting enough nurses being trained to do the job.”
Investment and recruitment
In response, the Scottish Government say they’ve committed £4.5 million for health boards to attract registered international nurses and 1,000 staff to support patients in hospitals and in community health teams.
They also add: “Nurses entering Scottish Government funded degree programmes will increase by 9% in 2022-23, to a total recommended intake of 4,536 nursing students.
“This will be the 10th successive increase in recommended student numbers, with the intake doubling over the last decade.”
