The number of people working for the NHS has reached an all-time high with virtually all categories of staff seeing increases in numbers, a census by The NHS Information Centre has revealed.
After a dip in overall numbers in the previous two years, the annual census showed staffing levels recovered to reach a peak of 1,368,200 in September 2008. The figure is a 2.8% increase on the previous year and a 27.7% increase compared to 1998. The census showed that in September 2008 the NHS employed: • 408,200 qualified nurses – up 26.2% on 1998. • 25,700 midwives – up 12.4% on 1998. • 34,900 consultants – up 56.4% on 1998. • 49,200 hospital doctors in training – an increase of 59.4% on 1998. Categories of staff which saw decreases in numbers were practice nurses, who saw their numbers decline for a second year running, falling by 3.6% from September 2007; and nursing assistants/auxiliary staff, whose numbers fell for the fifth consecutive year in September 2008 – a fall of 6% on the previous year.
