New move to cap staff fees
MSP backs calls to halt rising costs
A Labour MSP has backed calls to cap the fees agencies can charge the NHS for providing staff.
South of Scotland MSP Colin Smyth made the plea as new figures revealed that spending on agency staff has more than doubled in Ayrshire and Arran since 2006.
Figures revealed by Scottish Labour showed that over £13 million was spent last year on agency and midwifery bank staff. Since 2006 agency spend has risen from £6,637,000 in 2006 to £13,609,000 in 2017.
Scottish Labour has revealed that it will now use the SNP government’s forthcoming NHS safe staffing legislation to propose a cap on agency fees to stop private agencies profiting from the health service.
Mr Smyth said, “The soaring costs of agency spending for nursing and midwifery jobs in the past 10 years shows the absolute mess the SNP government has made of workforce planning in the NHS.
“There are now shortages of staff in almost every area and as a result NHS Ayrshire has to spend over £13 million a year on agency staff- more than doubling since 10 years ago. The private agencies who provide the staff will be taking their cut and profiteering from the workforce crisis in our NHS. This is money which should be going to pay NHS staff that work all year round to provide health care for us.
“That is why I am supporting moves to cap the amount of money a private agency can charge to provide staff, so the money put into our NHS is not used to support the profits of agencies but on providing the world class healthcare.”
Patricia Leiser, NHS Ayrshire & Arran human resources director, said: As with other health boards in Scotland, we are experiencing challenges to recruit to a range of consultant posts within specific clinical specialities.
“We have taken steps to maximise workforce supply, including participating in the recently publicised international campaign to recruit radiologists to work for the NHS in Scotland; engaging the expertise of medical recruitment agencies to attract highly specialised clinicians for some of our most difficult-to-fill posts; as well as adapting and flexing roles to alleviate the pressures of certain vacancies.
We aim to maintain a sustainable nursing workforce by using the NHSScotland Nursing and Midwifery Workforce Workload Planning Tools, which are used regularly as mandated by the Scottish Government; and by holding regular recruitment drives for nurses, including our nurse bank.
“We are confident that a range of measures will enable us to keep costs to a minimum and allow us to continue to make best use of public funding.”