NHS hospitals unable to fill vacant posts

Freedom of information requests have found that the NHS is struggling to fill as many as 1,600 vacant posts and is short of more than 100,000 staff.

Labour freedom of information requests show that almost one in four posts at some NHS trusts are lying vacant.

Figures from 82 of the 229 NHS trusts in England demonstrate that shortages of hospital and community-based doctors, and nurses, are getting worse.

Between them the 82 trusts had 35,993 unfilled full-time posts, representing a nine per cent vacancy rate - a figure which if replicated across all 229 trusts would mean a shortage of 100,517 staff.

Guy’s and St Thomas’ trust had the highest number of vacancies in March: 1,610 - 10 per cent of its overall workforce.

South London and the Maudsley trust has the highest proportion of missing personnel across the health service. Its 1,258 unfilled posts represent a 23 per cent vacancy rate.

Labour estimates, based on the figures, that the NHS is short of 42,855 nurses, 11,187 doctors to work in hospitals or community services and 12,219 nurse support workers.

Trusts are having to spend £3 billion a year on agency and interim staff because of workforce shortages they did not create, Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary said.

Ashworth added: “For years the government has failed to ensure enough new recruits coming through in key specialities, while failed policy decisions like the NHS pay cap and the ending of the NHS bursary have contributed to a growing crisis.”

Talking abut the analysis, Janet Davies, chief executive and general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: “This analysis pulls back the curtain on the state of staffing in the NHS this winter. Despite ministers’ rhetoric on the importance of safety, it will enter a perilous January without enough staff to give safe care.”