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UK’s Royal College of Nursing estimates looming workforce crisis.
More than 56,000 National Health Service (NHS) jobs have been lost or face the axe - double the figure of a year ago, the UK’s Royal College of Nursing said as they warned of an impending "crisis".
Data from the college found 56,058 jobs have been axed or face the cut across the UK.
In April, the figure was almost 40,000 and last November stood at 27,000. The figures include redundancies that have already been announced or are in the pipeline, and jobs that have not been filled once people leave or retire.
The information is taken from NHS trusts, including analysis of board meeting papers, forward planning, annual and strategy documents.
On top of job losses, the college warned of posts being downgraded - where jobs are reclassified by NHS trusts to save money. Staff can be expected to perform the same duties for less pay or less skilled workers are brought in.
In England alone, 48,029 NHS posts are set to be cut or have been lost, up on the 30,873 seven months ago. This is the equivalent of closing some of the biggest hospitals trusts in the country - such as Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust - more than four times over.
The UK government has promised to protect frontline services. At the same time, the NHS has also been tasked with finding £20 billion in efficiency savings.
However RCN chief executive Dr Peter Carter said there was no evidence that the £20 billion in efficiency savings demanded by the government had been reinvested in patient care, as promised
The Press Association
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