18.12.13
HEE to provide more nursing training places
University places for trainee nurses will be increased to 13,228, Health Education England (HEE) has announced.
Publishing its first national Workforce Plan, HEE has set out a 9% increase in nursing places in response to staffing levels being highlighted as a concern in a number of recent reviews.
The plan details investment in education and training programmes to begin in September 2014. HEE has also announced 222 extra GP training places and 20 extra places for postgraduate training. Trainee places for paramedics will be increased by 30%.
Dr Peter Carter, chief executive & general secretary of the RCN commented: “It’s important and welcome news that Health Education England is increasing the number of commissions for nursing training posts for next year. We’ve seen an almost 15% cut in the number of nursing student places commissioned since 2009/2010 while pressures on the health service have continued to increase, so this measure goes some way to addressing the potential shortage of nurses that the RCN has been warning about.
“In the light of evidence in the Francis Inquiry, many subsequent reports and the RCN’s own research, it’s vital that a long-term, sustainable approach to workforce planning is developed. Ensuring that we have enough trained nurses to keep up with demand is vital for patient safety across the NHS for now and for the future.”
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