The shortage of medical staff within the NHS is not a new issue.
Back in 2019 the Guardian reported that since the government removed the NHS bursary in 2017, 40,000 vacancies had been created in the NHS, with 10,000 fewer people a year applying for nursing degrees in England.
Nearly six years on – one Brexit and one pandemic later – this issue has now escalated into a crisis. A shortage of staff has led to intense pressure on services, which in turn has led to staff leaving the NHS at an alarming rate due to burn out and overworking.
Of course, this will come as little surprise to anyone who has followed the news in the past year. The once in a generation event that was the pandemic has fundamentally changed nursing – both as a profession and in the way we teach.
