19 July 2023
Arthritis Action welcomes the new NHS long-term workforce plan as announced by the Government on 30th June. The long-awaited plan was initially earmarked for publication in Spring 2022. It sets out how the NHS will address vacancies, meeting demands of a growing and ageing population by reforming, retraining, retaining, and recruiting hundreds of thousands more staff over the next 15 years.
The ambitious plan aims to double the number of medical school places, increase GP and nurse training, and enhance training opportunities for allied health practitioners.
As July marks the NHS’s 75th birthday, we are pleased to see the Government invest in its workforce.
The pledge is a good start to tackle increasing demand for services and the gap in available professionals. Arthritis Action would like to see the Government pledge support for more musculoskeletal-specific services, to address growing waiting lists and help more people gain a better quality of life with arthritis.
You can read the plan here and the factsheet here.