‘Perilous’ shortage of homecare workers leaves patients trapped in hospitals

Care workers have switched to better paid work in retail and hospitality. Photograph: Thianchai Sitthikongsak/Getty Images

A “perilous” shortage of homecare workers is the biggest reason thousands of people are languishing longer in hospital than needed, driving up waiting lists and making people sicker, figures reveal.

Almost one in four people unable to be discharged – sometimes for weeks – were trapped in hospital because they were waiting for home care, as agencies hand back contracts because staff are quitting owing to low pay, leaving 15% of jobs vacant.