New analysis of the NHS workforce says that record numbers of nurses are quitting the NHS in England, with the situation similar in the rest of the UK. More than 40,000 have left the health service in the past year, many citing stress and work/life balance as the reasons for doing so.
That amounts to one in nine of the workforce, data examined by the Nuffield Trust for the BBC has shown. The think tank said many of these were highly skilled and knowledgeable nurses with years left in their careers.
The Government may struggle to hit its target to recruit an extra 50,000 nurses in England during this Parliament, the Nuffield Trust said. Meanwhile, the Department of Health has said it will publish a workforce strategy and is half-way towards its recruitment target.
