Press Releases
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05/02/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to the Times Health Commission report
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) General Secretary and Chief Executive Pat Cullen said: “Nurses have been warning that the NHS is on life support for years – it will never be back on stable footing unless greater value is put on staff. There’s a crisis in the recruitment and retention of registered nurses. Pay must be improved to recognise their safety-critical skills and working conditions improved – right now abuse and burnout are normalised. It’s an unacceptable disgrace."
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04/02/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) responds to the restoration of power-sharing in Northern Ireland
Pat Cullen, RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive said: “The return of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive is to be greatly welcomed. Four years after pay parity was first restored to nursing staff in Northern Ireland, the Executive must now take urgent action to restore parity once more. The past two years of political inaction has forced many to question their future in our profession, adding to chronic nursing shortages across all sectors."
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31/01/2024
Press Release
Union leader demands seismic shift on nursing pay as government resumes talks with striking doctors
Royal College of Nursing General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, said: “Nursing staff are safety critical. Services should not run without us. But today’s poor understanding of our value leaves record jobs unfilled. Investment in nursing is investment in our population’s health. It is sound economics and what’s best for patients"
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25/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to the latest NHS England staff sickness absence data
Royal College of Nursing Director for England, Patricia Marquis, said: “Nursing and care staff are burning out – with high rates of depression, stress, and anxiety. Staff sickness has shown little sign of improvement over the last decade - today a staggering twice as many are grappling with mental health issues than calling in sick due to cold or flu."
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17/01/2024
Press Release
Nursing union leader vows to fight for NHS on the eve of strike in Northern Ireland
On the eve of strike action in Northern Ireland, Royal College of Nursing (RCN) General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, has given a video message to members: “Colleagues, it’s been four years since you first took to the picket lines in Northern Ireland. The first-ever nursing strike here."
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15/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to Hft and Care England report on social care funding
RCN Director for England, Patricia Marquis, said: “Yet another report shows adult social care buckling under the pressure brought about by years of neglect. Quick fixes won’t remedy the catastrophic failure to invest in a system we’ve been repeatedly told there was a plan of reform for."
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15/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to Liberal Democrats' analysis showing a record 420,000 patients waited more than 12 hours in A&E in 2023
Royal College of Nursing Director for England, Patricia Marquis, said: “The government is refusing to get to grips with the crisis plaguing our NHS, leaving patients frightened and nurses overstretched. Behind the numbers are people suffering for hours – with no privacy and left in danger of their health drastically deteriorating."
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11/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to the opening of the consultation on a pay spine for nursing staff in the NHS
Royal College of Nursing General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, said: “The current pay scale turns 20 years old this year and no longer reflects the skills and expertise in nursing today. Despite many years of experience, the vast majority of nurses are on the lowest pay bands possible. The current system only rewards people the further away they get from patient care. This approach is poor for patients and works against career progression for a nurse. Automatic pay band progression is afforded to some staff groups and never to nurses – it is unfair and unsustainable."
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11/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to the latest NHS England Referral to Treatment (RTT) waiting list data
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, said: “The NHS waiting list remains extraordinarily high and the UK government only has itself to blame. It’s been over a year since the prime minister pledged to bring down the waiting list, yet it remains 400,000 higher than when he made his promise."
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11/01/2024
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing responds to increased use of virtual wards in the NHS
RCN Head of Nursing Practice, Wendy Preston, said: “Virtual wards aren’t a silver bullet to solve the crisis in health and social care. Whether they’re in a physical bed or on a virtual ward, patients still need to be able to see a nurse."
Page last updated - 22/03/2024
