To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the (1) doctor, and (2) nurse, shortfall in NHS hospitals in (1) January, (2) February, and (3) March; how those positions were filled; and who took on those roles.
Answered on
19 May 2020
The Department does not hold the data requested.
The Government has pledged to increase nurse numbers by 50,000 in England by 2025. As part of this commitment, eligible pre-registration nursing students enrolled on courses at English universities from September 2020 will receive a payment of at least £5,000 per academic year which they will not need to pay back. There will be up to £3,000 additional funding for some students to support with childcare costs, students studying specialist subjects or students studying in areas struggling to recruit.
An additional 1,500 undergraduate medical school places are being made available for domestic students in England - a 25% increase over three years by September 2020.
The interim NHS People Plan committed to re-balancing the supply of doctors across geographies and specialties. When the final NHS People Plan is published, scheduled to be later this year, it will explore options for growing the medical workforce.