Almost a fifth of NHS staff ready to quit once they find new jobs

The Government is yet to publish its forthcoming NHS workforce plan that will set out how vacancies will be filled. The report said that 62.9 per cent of respondents agreed with this, “which is down 4.8 percentage points, and is now 11.3 percentage points lower than in 2020”. Four in 10 ambulance workers also told the survey they have seen errors or near misses over the last year that harmed, or could harm, patients or staff, with the figure being 33.5 per cent across the entire NHS. Around half of ambulance staff said they have felt burnt out because of their work in the past year, while 42 per cent said they often think about leaving their organisation. “It is of course concerning to see that 17 per cent of staff considering leaving for another job will do so as soon as they find one and that, despite the continuing efforts of health leaders to recruit and retain employees, the numbers of those willing to recommend the NHS as an employer has also dropped.” Sally Warren, director of policy at The King’s Fund, said: “Today’s figures are a wake-up call to the Government of the need for a fully-funded workforce plan that can ensure the right number of staff, with the right skills, working in a supportive culture, so they are able to deliver high quality care to patients.