The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is calling for the government not to drop NHS investment as this will delay future progress.
Responding to the Wanless Report released yesterday by the King’s Fund, General Secretary of the RCN, Dr Peter Carter, said that the NHS is at a “crossroads”.
He adds: “Experience shows us that when investment drops, NHS staff are the first to be targeted with 22,000 posts lost in the NHS over the last 18 months.
“We already have the sad state of affairs where thousands of newly qualified healthcare workers can’t find jobs, while staff on the wards and in the community are struggling to cope with spiralling workloads.”
He adds that this is because trusts across the country are facing a financial squeeze.
“What the NHS needs now, more than ever, are policies that ensure organisational stability and a Comprehensive Spending Review that delivers sustained funding for the NHS.”
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