Improving NHS productivity ‘comes with nurse burnout risks’
Nursing and other healthcare leaders have pleaded for support from the government to boost productivity, as a report shows the lengths workers are going to in order to up efficiency with what they currently have.
The report, titled Achieving Value for Money, was published by NHS Providers today (19 June) and highlighted various ways healthcare organisations were working towards a goal of better productivity.
“The real worry is that the next government simply asks [nurses] to continue doing more with less”
Nicola Ranger
These methods included digitisation to free staff up, collaborating with neighbouring organisations to share a workload, standardisation and incentivising staff to reduce the long waiting lists.
For example, the report highlighted schemes by Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust to shift around resources, freeing up capacity for community nurses.
This included hiring a specific leg ulcer specialist which, while expensive as an up-front cost, reduced the number of visits community nurses had to perform and the number of hours of nursing care patients required before discharge from 110 hours to 68 hours.
The same trust also set up another community nursnig pilot, which the report referenced, to give patients more of an “active role” in their care by improving their understanding of their needs and moving towards a more independent care plan.
NHS Providers said this pilot reduced workloads for the community nursing team and allowed 20% of patients to be discharged earlier from the service.
Julian Hartley
However, NHS Providers chief executive Sir Julian Hartley and Royal College of Nursing (RCN) acting general secretary and chief executive Professor Nicola Ranger said that while such measures were commendable, the health service needed more resources to avoid nurse burnout and to improve productivity further.
The report referred to previous research NHS Providers has done into burnout in the NHS, and said tackling this would be crucial.
It read: “While it is difficult to quantify the effect of burnout and low morale on NHS productivity levels, it would be fair to assume that a tired and pressurised workforce is not conducive to increased productivity growth.”
Sir Julian said: “Work being done on the ‘front line’ of the NHS offers real hope. It’s encouraging to see how trusts are finding positive solutions in the face of extraordinary pressures.
“But if we’re serious about improving the sustainability of the health service and want to help it to be as productive as possible then the efforts of trusts must be matched by long-term cross-government support including capital investment in NHS buildings and facilities.”
He said trusts were working “flat out” to cope with their existing resources and to improve value for money.
Professor Ranger added: “This report highlights just how hard NHS staff are working to deliver for patients, but also the terrible levels of burnout they face.
“It is right to celebrate the innovation taking place in our health service, but we cannot lose sight of staff shortages, which are the fundamental problem holding service productivity back.
“Nursing staff are clinical leaders and key to solving the health service’s problems, but the real worry is that the next government simply asks them to continue doing more with less.
Nicola Ranger
“Concerted action to boost recruitment into the profession is essential to providing excellent patient care, as are measures to stop experienced and highly-skilled nurses leaving.”
The RCN leader said fair pay for nurses should be a “priority” for whoever wins next month’s general election.
NHS Providers’ report came after repeated calls from incumbent prime minister Rishi Sunak’s government for the NHS, and other public services, to improve efficiency and productivity.
In chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s most recent spring budget and autumn statement, in March 2024 and November 2023 respectively, the NHS was told it must increase productivity instead of being given significantly more funding.
In the spring budget, public services were given £4.2bn for this specific purpose.
The NHS was pledged £3.4bn, which, Mr Hunt said, would be ringfenced for improving technology, digital transformation and replacing outdated computer infrastructure.
“We need a more productive state, not a bigger state,” Mr Hunt said.
