Watchdog raises concerns over health workforce shortages

Acute health and social care staffing challenges in some of the region's most rural areas will only worsen without a move away from traditional roles, a task force has warned.

Nearly half of all social care staff leave within a year of starting work, a report by joint scrutiny committees in North Yorkshire details, with a fifth of GPs in some areas set to retire within the next five years. Now, as watchdog members prepare calls for greater Government funding and training support, as well as protection for EU workers, they say new solutions are needed to reshape the region’s workforce.

“Despite people’s best efforts, I am concerned that the workforce shortages that we are currently experiencing will get worse as the full impact of the UK exit from the EU and the end of student bursaries for nurse and midwifery training are felt,” said County Coun Jim Clark, chairman of North Yorkshire County Council’s health scrutiny committee.

While a great deal of work is underway to address acknowledged shortages, he added, national policy is impacting on health and social care in the county.

“The concern remains that the issues are not being tackled in completely joined up and systematic way,” he said. “The complexities of the health and social care system and the fractured natured of the NHS has meant that, despite the hard work of regional bodies and agencies, workforce planning is often undertaken in silos or unilaterally.”