Specialist nurses
Wednesday, 30 Apr 2008 11:10
Specialist nurses are said to be vital in the NHS
Concerns have been raised that the jobs of specialist nurses could be under threat due to cuts being made in the NHS.
A survey of 330 specialist and experienced nurses conducted by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) revealed that cuts are being made in over a quarter (27 per cent) of participants' trusts.
One in five said they were at risk of redundancy and 47 per cent have been at risk of re-banding/downgrading.
Nearly half (45 per cent) say they have worked outside of their specialist area to cover staff shortages.
This is despite the NHS being on track to have a £1.8 billion surplus and a recent emphasis on the importance of specialist nurses.
Lord Ara Darzi's review of the NHS said specialist care should be at the heart of the NHS.
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