‘ Risks to care’ from shortage of consultants

HOSPITALS are being hit by a major shortage of consultants – and staffing is “inadequate” to meet patients’ care needs, the British Medical Association said.

It has investigated why consultants in England leave the NHS earlier than anticipated and before their retirement age.

The BMA said high demands, issues with pensions, tax and growing workloads are big factors, while insufficient staff levels see doctors cut their hours or even quit the profession. Its report, in conjunction with seven Royal Colleges and the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, makes suggestions to relieve pressure from the Covid crisis.

“The current consultant workforce is inadequately sized,” the report says. “It is hard to be confident that the NHS will be able to resolve its current waiting time difficulties.” The total of consultants rises slightly each year, but demand for care grows faster with the ageing population.

The BMA wants the NHS to prioritise retaining consultants, to add 7,500 medical school places a year and to use retired staff. Dr Rob Harwood, its consultants committee chairman, warned: “We risk creating an NHS that no one wants to work in.”