Newsroom
Our most important asset
Chief executive, Steve Dunn, has written his latest blog for staff.
If I asked a random selection of people outside the Trust what they thought the biggest issue facing the NHS today was, I think I’d get some varied responses.
I’m sure the things the media talks about often would be up there; increased demand, less money, fewer resources and the like.
Those things are all true in that they certainly bring us challenges, but there’s something pretty vital missing from that list – our staff. You.
Let me explain. You are quite simply the thing that I’m most proud about working here. There truly aren’t many jobs where, every day, you get to see examples of people actually improving healthcare and making a difference to people’s lives. Never before have I met a bunch of people so prepared to tackle challenges (whatever is thrown at them), say ‘bring it on!’, and deliver.
But right now, it doesn’t feel like there are enough of us does it? Although our vacancy levels are no higher than they were last year, I know it’s felt like a really tough few months for many of you. We aren’t alone in feeling this way; NHS Providers, which represents health chiefs, has recently published information saying that for two thirds of trust leaders, recruitment and staff numbers are more of a concern for them than the money.
And that’s probably because things have got busier. I’ve talked about this before - nationally emergency admissions are up 10%, ambulance calls are up 15% and diagnostic tests up 19%. The NHS workforce has grown by 6% since 2014…you don’t need to be a rocket-scientist to see those things don’t match up. In terms of demand it’s no different closer to home – we’re now consistently seeing more than 200 patients a day in our emergency department.
Believe me that we get it, and we know it feels tough out there. There is light at the end of the tunnel though. Certainly here at WSFT we aren’t content to sit on our laurels (as ever!) and are doing everything we can to get the best and the brightest to come and join our amazing team. So, what are we doing to help make a difference?
Our overarching mission (should we choose to accept it), is to fill as many registered nurse vacancies as possible, whether through substantive recruitment, bank, and agency staff.
We’ve been looking at ways we can become more attractive to bank and agency nurses; that’s included speaking to bank-only registered nurses, around 50 in total, to see whether they’d consider joining us more permanently. It might seem like small numbers, but we know they all add up.
Taking a look at agency staff, we’re hoping to source 30 additional agency nurses so that we can create some excess capacity (or breathing space!), so we are prepared to be able to open escalation areas if over winter if needed. Whilst of course we’d prefer to fill vacancies with our own staff, we’ve taken the decision to use agency where needed so that we can help reduce the pressure that we know you’re feeling.
We’re also casting our staff net overseas. We know that the calibre of overseas doctors and nurses is exceptionally high, and we’re very proud of the diversity of colleagues from across the world that we already have in our West Suffolk team. We’re hoping to bolster our ranks with 40-50 fully qualified and trained nurses from overseas over the coming months, and we already have 80-90 interested candidates lined up for interviews. We’re even going digital in our interview techniques, offering Skype interviews for candidates for appropriate parts of the interview process! Of course with international language tests and clinical assessments to go through this won’t be a quick-fix, but we hope the first would arrive with us around the end of February.
I want to reassure you that we’re doing everything we can to help make things easier. Although as I said vacancy levels are no higher than this time last year, it has felt pressured and it’s become more challenging to fill gaps due to bank and agency shortages. But we are taking steps forward, and it will get better.
Remember that you can help us too; if you’re able to introduce a fully-fledged registered nurse to the Trust, either from the UK or internationally, you’ll get a £500 thank you from us when they join, and another £500 after their first year. So recommend a friend!
And of course, as is our way here in west Suffolk, we’re all in this together. If there’s something we’ve missed and you have ideas you want to share – tell us. Get in touch at recruitment@wsh.nhs.uk.
Truly, thank you for everything you continue to do every day for our Trust and for our patients.
Best,
Steve
Back to Newsroom