The Real NHS
#166
Banned
Joined: Sep 2012
Location: UK now, Australia in 2014
Posts: 1,000
Re: The Real NHS
Unfortunately it is also happening in NSW and South Australia as I understand it.
Im not sure if it UK wide, a quick search shows over 600 nursing job vacancies in the Herefordshire region. I would hazzard a guess and say there are also job vacancies all over Australia but a common misconception is that there are no jobs in this country.
Im not sure if it UK wide, a quick search shows over 600 nursing job vacancies in the Herefordshire region. I would hazzard a guess and say there are also job vacancies all over Australia but a common misconception is that there are no jobs in this country.
I saw a programme a couple of months back that showed a lot of hospitals up and down the country are massively in debt and are looking at cutting costs, plus front line nursing staff numbers are at an all time low, obviously it's not every hospital, but nurses morale is at an all time low in general.
#167
Re: The Real NHS
If the NHS is anything like the part of the public sector I'm working in, these vacancies aren't new positions. Senior people are retiring early or being made redundant. They are then replaced with part-time staff, junior staff, and fewer staff.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
#168
Banned
Joined: Sep 2012
Location: UK now, Australia in 2014
Posts: 1,000
Re: The Real NHS
If the NHS is anything like the part of the public sector I'm working in, these vacancies aren't new positions. Senior people are retiring early or being made redundant. They are then replaced with part-time staff, junior staff, and fewer staff.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
#173
Re: The Real NHS
There's been three rounds of nursing redundancies at my wife's hospital, front line nursing numbers are at a record low, i think its UK wide, it's good advice for nurses looking at migrating, Queensland isn't the place to head at present, but there's plenty of other areas and states that nurses are sought after.
Which jobs and at what hospitals will have to remain anonymous.
#174
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,606
Re: The Real NHS
If the NHS is anything like the part of the public sector I'm working in, these vacancies aren't new positions. Senior people are retiring early or being made redundant. They are then replaced with part-time staff, junior staff, and fewer staff.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
We lost three people last year, one very senior. They have been (will be) replaced only by two staff, both at the most junior level. Also, advertising and interviewing is deliberately dragged out so the university saves money during the extended period between when people leave and ther replacements start. In the meantime, we have to work extra hard to cover the gaps.
that's the reality of the situation from my own experience in the public sector.
A 40 hour employee leaves, Their eight hour shift becomes two four hour shifts, that way you have more flexibility for scheduling at busy times, OK so that makes good business sense, but its not good for employees as they hire 2 or 3 people to do those 4 hours shifts, As a manager I was told not to schedule them too many hours, that way none of the new hires get medical and other benefits, plus it takes them many years longer to work up the pay scale, saving the company lots of money...
Of course that's not good enough for the greedy, they decide to install scanners so that the general public can check themselves out, Oh How Fun!, putting more people out of work and putting that money in their piggy bank, I know some people like self check but what kind of a discount do you get for that, not even 1%, so you are now an unpaid employee, this is the greedy at work, they will do anything to save a buck, Self check has put thousands out of work, and on welfare, of course we the tax payers fork out for that, so how much have we really saved...
I remember when scanners were first introduced, people were concerned they may lose their jobs, they were told they wouldn't, but that wasn't really the truth was it...
#176
Re: The Real NHS
That's how its been in the retail trade for over thirty years, I'm not kidding...
A 40 hour employee leaves, Their eight hour shift becomes two four hour shifts, that way you have more flexibility for scheduling at busy times, OK so that makes good business sense, but its not good for employees as they hire 2 or 3 people to do those 4 hours shifts, As a manager I was told not to schedule them too many hours, that way none of the new hires get medical and other benefits, plus it takes them many years longer to work up the pay scale, saving the company lots of money...
Of course that's not good enough for the greedy, they decide to install scanners so that the general public can check themselves out, Oh How Fun!, putting more people out of work and putting that money in their piggy bank, I know some people like self check but what kind of a discount do you get for that, not even 1%, so you are now an unpaid employee, this is the greedy at work, they will do anything to save a buck, Self check has put thousands out of work, and on welfare, of course we the tax payers fork out for that, so how much have we really saved...
I remember when scanners were first introduced, people were concerned they may lose their jobs, they were told they wouldn't, but that wasn't really the truth was it...
A 40 hour employee leaves, Their eight hour shift becomes two four hour shifts, that way you have more flexibility for scheduling at busy times, OK so that makes good business sense, but its not good for employees as they hire 2 or 3 people to do those 4 hours shifts, As a manager I was told not to schedule them too many hours, that way none of the new hires get medical and other benefits, plus it takes them many years longer to work up the pay scale, saving the company lots of money...
Of course that's not good enough for the greedy, they decide to install scanners so that the general public can check themselves out, Oh How Fun!, putting more people out of work and putting that money in their piggy bank, I know some people like self check but what kind of a discount do you get for that, not even 1%, so you are now an unpaid employee, this is the greedy at work, they will do anything to save a buck, Self check has put thousands out of work, and on welfare, of course we the tax payers fork out for that, so how much have we really saved...
I remember when scanners were first introduced, people were concerned they may lose their jobs, they were told they wouldn't, but that wasn't really the truth was it...
#177
Banned
Joined: Jan 2011
Location: The REAL Utopia.
Posts: 9,910
Re: The Real NHS
Im not sure how self checkouts have resulted in 1000's of job losses, I dont know about Australia but most of the big supermarkets here have been employing more people.
#178
Re: The Real NHS
The public sector in this country has finally caught up and is going through what the private sector has been doing for years....restructuring and streamlining to be able to survive and continue in some shape or form, while attempting to support an ageing and burgeoning population.
Yes NHS staff deserve better, the redundancies and pressure on clinical staff in hospitals stinks, but as far as I can see there is no alternative.
I still believe the crucial elements of service we receive in our hospitals are fantastic. My experiences in the UK were having a very ill father who eventually died in hospital after receiving palliative care and a son who required surgery at a young age, both times the clinical treatment and nursing care were second to none.
Go to many places in Europe and be admitted to hospital, and you would be expected to bring a friend or relative with you to undertake the majority of your nursing care.
Yes NHS staff deserve better, the redundancies and pressure on clinical staff in hospitals stinks, but as far as I can see there is no alternative.
I still believe the crucial elements of service we receive in our hospitals are fantastic. My experiences in the UK were having a very ill father who eventually died in hospital after receiving palliative care and a son who required surgery at a young age, both times the clinical treatment and nursing care were second to none.
Go to many places in Europe and be admitted to hospital, and you would be expected to bring a friend or relative with you to undertake the majority of your nursing care.
Last edited by pommybird; Oct 3rd 2012 at 8:37 am.
#179
Banned
Joined: Jan 2011
Location: The REAL Utopia.
Posts: 9,910
Re: The Real NHS
I have to agree, my son broke his arm about 7 weeks ago now and the care he received was fantastic, hardly any waiting and amazing staff. The system isnt perfect and is being stretched but certainly around here there are no signs of lack of staff or bad 'service'.
#180
Re: The Real NHS
If you peruse the recreation and leisure literature from 30 or so years ago, it was full of predictions that technology and automation would make our jobs easier and we'd all be taking lseisurely 3-day or 4-day "weekends". The reality has been that we are simply expected to be more productive in our 5 days (ha! Can't remember my last 5-day work week), that we are employed part-time to do a full week's work, that we now work on the train to work, via our laptops and smart phones, and/or that fewer peple are employed to achieve what more people were achieving before all this technology made our tasks easier.
Oh, and I forgot one more thing - we now have to spend 50% of our time writing reports and evaluations and blue-sky thinking strategies instead of actually getting on with the job.
NHS (I just put that in there so the post wasn't off-topic!)
And yes, before anyone points out the bleedin' obvious, I know Australia is probably the same!
Oh, and I forgot one more thing - we now have to spend 50% of our time writing reports and evaluations and blue-sky thinking strategies instead of actually getting on with the job.
NHS (I just put that in there so the post wasn't off-topic!)
And yes, before anyone points out the bleedin' obvious, I know Australia is probably the same!
Last edited by dunroving; Oct 3rd 2012 at 9:00 am.