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Nurse-to-patient ratios give staff the certainty they crave
Critics say ratios are a blunt instrument, but they are better than no instrument at all, and do allow room for local flexibility in NHS workforce planning
Critics say ratios are a blunt instrument, but they are better than no instrument at all, and do allow room for local flexibility in NHS workforce planning
Even when the NHS nurses’ pay dispute comes to an end, another critical issue will remain to be fixed.
The absence of a reliable approach to determining minimum safe staffing levels in England is a major and understandable driver of nurse discontent.
The need to sort out nurse understaffing pre-dates COVID-19, but is now more urgent than ever. The NHS and social care sectors are buckling under increasing demand, with spiralling staff shortages.
Fundamental flaw in leaving safe staffing to local decision makers
The emphasis on local decision
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