A ‘crisis’ in A&E nursing, a decline in the number of district nurses and concerns over pay were among the key issues raised at the Royal College of Nursing’s annual congress.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) annual congress recently took place in Liverpool. Attended by thousands of nurses, midwives, and healthcare assistants, delegates and speakers came together to debate key issues in the health service and share their insights into best practice.
High on the agenda at RCN’s annual congress were issues of ‘fair pay’, the need to listen to nurses’ concerns over care quality, the challenges being faced in A&E nursing and the future of the district nurse role. The Congress raised some thought-provoking questions including: ‘should patients be charged for GP appointments?’, ‘will district nurses become extinct?’ and ‘should there be a legal requirement on safe staffing levels?’
In his opening address, chief executive and general secretary of the RCN, Dr Peter Carter said: “We are facing the most challenging times that the UK healthcare system has seen in many years,” adding that nurses already know this because they are experiencing the impact of “a crushing level of demand” every day they go to work, they are being “stretched to the limits”, and are delivering care with too few staff.
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