‘Tsunami of unmet need’: England’s health and social care system ‘exhausted and depleted’ due to staff shortages, report says
The UK’s health and social care watchdog has issued a warning to the government in its annual assessment of the system in England, raising concerns about staff shortages and the risk of people being unable to access support.
In a report published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on Thursday, the independent regulator outlined how the health and care workforces “are exhausted and depleted,” impacting their ability to provide “vital care” to those who need it.
Although the CQC claimed “the system has not collapsed,” the report found that health and social care staff have been “drained in terms of both resilience and capacity.” Looking at data from the last year, the CQC cited how the vacancy rate has been rising month-on-month from 6% in April to 10.2% in September, with attempts at recruitment having failed.
While the government pledged £5.4 billion ($7.46 billion) earlier this year to “help address the challenges faced by social care,” the CQC urged politicians to commit to providing the funding “for a longer period” to allow care providers “to make longer term investments.”
“Further instability could result in a ripple effect across the wider health and care system which risks becoming a tsunami of unmet need across all sectors, with increasing numbers of people unable to access care,” Ian Trenholm, the CQC’s chief executive, said following the release of the report.
The UK’s care minister, Gillian Keegan, addressed the concerns raised by the CQC on Friday morning, highlighting how the Department of Health has announced a £162.5 million ($224.42 million) retention and recruitment fund to address labour shortages.
Despite the government’s suggestion that it has provided funding to plug existing gaps in the system, Peter Wyman, the chair of the CQC, warned that “there is no silver bullet to the problems health and social care are facing,” adding that officials should work to create “more coordinate care” to build “a system designed around local need.”
Although the CQC claimed “the system has not collapsed,” the report found that health and social care staff have been “drained in terms of both resilience and capacity.” Looking at data from the last year, the CQC cited how the vacancy rate has been rising month-on-month from 6% in April to 10.2% in September, with attempts at recruitment having failed.
While the government pledged £5.4 billion ($7.46 billion) earlier this year to “help address the challenges faced by social care,” the CQC urged politicians to commit to providing the funding “for a longer period” to allow care providers “to make longer term investments.”
“Further instability could result in a ripple effect across the wider health and care system which risks becoming a tsunami of unmet need across all sectors, with increasing numbers of people unable to access care,” Ian Trenholm, the CQC’s chief executive, said following the release of the report.
The UK’s care minister, Gillian Keegan, addressed the concerns raised by the CQC on Friday morning, highlighting how the Department of Health has announced a £162.5 million ($224.42 million) retention and recruitment fund to address labour shortages.
Despite the government’s suggestion that it has provided funding to plug existing gaps in the system, Peter Wyman, the chair of the CQC, warned that “there is no silver bullet to the problems health and social care are facing,” adding that officials should work to create “more coordinate care” to build “a system designed around local need.”
