University Alliance report highlights ways to help solve NHS workforce crisis

University Alliance, an association of universities which collectively trains 30 per cent of nurses in England, is calling for more university involvement in NHS recruitment.

Its recently published briefing paper ‘Delivering the Healthcare Workforce of the Future’ highlights four areas where Universities, the NHS and Government can work together to find solutions to the ongoing NHS workforce crisis.

Alliance universities turn away thousands of qualified nursing applicants a year because the NHS lacks capacity to provide the placements nursing students are required to do as part of their qualification. They also struggle to effectively plan long-term investment in nursing training because training providers are not routinely involved in NHS workforce planning.

In a recent article on the Higher Education Policy Institute's website, Susanna Kalitowski, Head of Policy at the University Alliance, said:

"The headlines have been dominated for weeks by grim stories detailing the extent of the NHS workforce crisis, which is deepening with the addition of widescale strikes. There are nowhere near enough staff with over 130,000 vacancies in England – including over 46,000 nursing posts. This is even though the Government is on target to meet its manifesto pledge of 50,000 more nurses. Demand for nurses is increasing more quickly than supply."

"Although the NHS workforce is facing an unprecedented crisis, there is huge potential for the higher education sector to be more involved in finding solutions to longstanding issues. If they have as seat at the table, universities and colleges can do much more to help alleviate the strain on the healthcare service and deliver a workforce fit for the future of the NHS."

The briefing highlights four areas where Universities, the NHS and Government can work together to find solutions to the ongoing NHS workforce crisis. These are:

• Involve the education sector in long-term NHS workforce planning through a cross-government working group which includes the Department for Education, and through university representation on Integrated Care Boards.

• Reform placement tariffs for nursing students: currently NHS trusts receive £5,000 per nursing student they offer placements to, compared with £30,000 for doctors.

• Fully embrace simulation in nursing training: the Nursing and Midwifery Council recently announced that 600 hours of nursing student placements could take place in simulated environments. This was a welcome development, and simulated training should now be invested in for the long-term.

• Explore a new model for nursing education: nursing students are currently assessed on the number of hours of placements they have completed, with a requirement to complete 2,600 hours, rather than their level of competency. University Alliance recommends exploring a quality over quantity approach to assessment, as is used in the US and Canada.

University Alliance CEO Vanessa Wilson said:

“Alliance universities are delivering innovative nursing training including the use of cutting edge ‘virtual’ clinical placements, taking pressure off NHS trusts and other clinical placement providers in the process.

“The exciting developments in simulated settings alongside regulatory and funding reforms would enable universities to train larger numbers of competent and confident nurses without compromising on quality.

“Ensuring universities have a seat at the table during national, regional, and local discussions on workforce planning is also crucial to growing the domestic workforce.

“There is huge potential for the higher education sector to scale up its nursing training provision, and, in doing so, alleviate the strain on NHS trusts and other clinical placement providers. University Alliance members stand ready to work with the NHS and the Government to help provide solutions to longstanding issues and to deliver a workforce fit for the future.”