Nurses have too many patients to care for and too much paperwork

A survey of 4,000 nurses across the UK has found that many are considering leaving the job.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) survey found many nurses felt undervalued, with too many patients to care for and too much paperwork.

More than half (56 per cent) of those surveyed said that too much time is spent on non-nursing duties with 59 per cent saying that they are too busy to provide the level of care that they would like. Some 43 per cent have seen an increase in the number of patients they are being asked to care for while 42 per cent of those in the NHS reported recruitment freezes where they work.

More than a third (34 per cent) say that bullying and harassment is a problem in their workplace. Some 82 per cent had worked when not feeling well enough to do so (15 per cent had done so more than five times). Of the reasons given for this, 46 per cent said the main reason was work-related stress.

Consequently, fewer than half (45 per cent) would recommend nursing as a career and nearly a third (29 per cent) do not feel nursing will offer them a secure job in the future.

Almost third of all respondents (31 per cent) were seeking a new job, with almost a quarter looking to leave health care completely.

Commenting on the survey results, Josie Irwin, head of employment relations at the RCN, said: “Nursing staff are being placed in intolerable situations, working themselves sick and still not feeling they have been able to deliver the care they would like.

“Many nurses skip every break, work late after every shift, do their paperwork in their own time, and the pressure just increases. Many are coming in to work despite being unwell, often due to work-related stress. This is no good for nurses, but we know it will have an effect on patients too.”

When it came to salaries and the number of hours worked, more than half (53 per cent) have worked extra hours to earn money to pay for bills and other everyday living expenses and a third (32 per cent) have worked night or weekend shifts to help pay bills and everyday living expenses, leading to serious concerns about keeping experienced staff in the profession in the face of continuing pay restraint.

A nurse commented: “I have to work late most shifts to ensure workload is complete. Too much paperwork and not enough patient care.”

Another said: “The ward is intense and busy. We are running ourselves into the ground, not taking breaks and leaving an hour after shift’s end to get all our work done. We should get paid a lot more for this amount of pressure.”

A healthcare assistant working in the independent sector said: “It is very hard work, the majority of people will need basic care at some point of their lives – it is very underappreciated.”

Ms Irwin added: “Employers, the NHS and the government need to work together to ensure that there are enough nurses, with the right level of skills, where they are needed.

“There needs to be a recognition that care is a part of all our futures, and we should value it, invest in it and train enough people to deliver it well.”