Racism, harassment and discrimination takes a terrible toll on ethnic minority NHS staff: Zeynep Demir Aslim/Shutterstock During the COVID-19 pandemic, a time filled with uncertainty and fear, ethnically minoritised NHS staff have not only had to contend with the virus but also a workplace fraught with inequalities. Recent reports highlight concerning – and ongoing – …
Pay gaps and less chance of a top degree: the unequal experience of ethnic minority staff and students at English universities: fizkes/Shutterstock A 2020 report on racial harassment published by industry body Universities UK drew attention to the “institutional racism and systemic issues that pervade the entire higher education sector”. In the same year, the …
Why NHS England is struggling – despite more staff and money: Overall public satisfaction with the NHS in England is currently at a 40-year low of 29%, a recent survey by the King’s Fund thinktank has found. People are not happy with waiting times for GP and hospital appointments. Over half of those surveyed think …
‘We are worn out and no one cares’: why ambulance staff in UK and Australia are ready to quit the profession: The COVID-19 pandemic may be over, but its scars remain for those on the frontline of the health sector – not least in the ambulance services. And our research conducted separately in the UK …
Physician associates: a solution for healthcare staff shortages or a colonial throwback?: SeventyFour/Shutterstock Before the COVID pandemic, the global health workforce needed as many as 6.4 million more medical doctors, and the gap between demand for health workers and supply is growing. As you might expect, the shortage is most acutely felt in low- and …
The COVID vaccine mandate in English care homes led to fewer staff – and may not have reduced resident deaths: Studio Romantic/Shutterstock Mandatory COVID vaccination as a condition of employment has been a commonly used – though controversial – policy around the world during the pandemic. Much of the debate on vaccine mandates has rightly …
Using pharmacists to ease pressure on GPs will only work with proper funding and more staff: You may soon be able to visit your pharmacist to get certain medicines without seeing a GP first. Yuri A/PeopleImages.com/ Shutterstock The NHS is under tremendous pressure and patients are increasingly struggling to access appointments and urgent care. In …
Better quality jobs are what the UK economy needs to end strikes, staff shortages and low productivity: Productivity in the UK over the last 15 years has been described as growing at a “snail’s pace”. Meanwhile, wages lag way behind inflation, and numerous sectors are suffering from staff shortages. One thing that connects these three …
Spring budget 2023: free early years places extended – but needs of children and staff must not be forgotten: DGLimages/Shutterstock The centrepiece of the spring 2023 budget was the provision of funded early years places for children of working parents. This will be expanded to cover children from nine months old until they start school, …
NHS recovery plan: why an extra £2.6 billion is not enough without more staff: Matthew Troke/Shutterstock The UK government has announced an extra £1 billion of funding to support 800 new ambulances, 100 specialist mental health vehicles and 5,000 more sustainable hospital beds. This sum has been ringfenced for 2023-24 to provide extra capacity and …
NHS plans to expand ‘virtual wards’ – but who will staff them?: PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock To tackle ever-increasing hospital waiting times, the government is reforming the way the NHS provides services. One of these reforms is the expansion of virtual wards. The goal is to treat 50,000 people a month in their homes, using …
Why care home staff in the UK are at breaking point: Since the post-COVID reopening of the economy, staffing shortages in the care sector in England have been of increasing concern. In October 2021, British charity Skills for Care warned that, at 8.2%, adult social care vacancy rates in England were exceeding pre-pandemic levels (which …
Four ways pensions still fail to support staff who are young, low paid and part time: Unsplash/Helena Lopes Financial advisers often say it’s never too early to start thinking about your pension. And with good reason. As recently as ten years ago, less than half of all UK employees were saving into a workplace scheme, …
P&O: sacking of 800 staff shows just how precarious UK jobs can be: The sacking of 800 workers by P&O Ferries is devastating for every single one of them. The staff, some of whom have served the company for decades, were told – by video call – that they were no longer employed, with immediate …
South Africa in the news: COVID: East Bay omicron cases were vaccinated Kaiser staff: Eleven of 12 suspected omicron cases Alameda County health officials reported Friday were Kaiser staff in Oakland.: “South Africa” – BingNews LIVE: General Bipin Rawat cremation, Rohit Sharma replaces Virat Kohli, Narendra Modi, Omicron, Covid-19: In the world of sports, with …
How air filters can make COVID wards safer for patients and staff: Alexandros Michailidis/Shutterstock Hospitals are there to help sick people get better, but they can also be an infection risk. During the pandemic, many healthcare workers have caught COVID from patients they’ve been treating. Non-COVID patients have also picked up the virus while in …
South Africa in the news: Nine positive cases among Munster staff and players in South Africa: Munster have revealed there have been nine positive cases of Covid-19 among their travelling players and staff in South Africa. This followed another round of PCR testing in Cape Town. The remaining …: “South Africa” – BingNews Hotez talks …
South Africa in the news: Fears of job losses as cash-strapped Autopax again fails to pay staff salaries: Employees at state-owned bus operator Autopax have not been paid salaries again, sparking fears about the company’s future as the peak holiday season draws closer. Operations at the company’s Cape …: “South Africa” – BingNews EXPLAINER: Why …