Shortages of Skills.

Much of what seems to ail the NHS isn’t about the quality of the care. There are now serious shortages of trained nurses, a shortage of people choosing nursing as a career and the same situation exists with psychiatrists. The government has stated it would like to have another twenty thousand trained psychiatrists in the near future, but no where near that number are enrolling to achieve these qualifications. When a person is considering a career, why would they choose a profession where the government caps salaries for years thereby eroding buying power relative to inflation?

The British are justifiably proud of the NHS, but we will need to refocus and recommit to adequate funding for all services, adequate recruitment that anticipates future need and retention of skilled staff. In the absence of this foundation will not meet our future needs.