NEWS
NURSES SCEPTICAL ABOUT TWO-WEEK DISCHARGE TARGET
Most nurses in Scotland do not believe the country’s new two-week patient discharge target will help reduce delays, a survey has found. Last week, the Scottish Government introduced the target that no hospital patient should wait more than two weeks to be discharged. But a Royal Voluntary Service study assisted by The King’s Fund think tank found 70% of the 50 nurses surveyed lack confidence in the measure. A total of 84% said delayed discharge is a serious problem where they work, and 66% said a lack of social care is the biggest cause of delayed discharge. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: ‘The health secretary has made clear that tackling delayed discharge must be a key priority for the government, NHS boards and local authorities. That is why we have committed £100 million over the next three years to address this issue.’
COURT RULING REINFORCES IMPORTANCE OF EXPLAINING TREATMENT RISKS CLEARLY Nurses will need to ensure patients understand the seriousness of their condition and the risks associated with proposed treatment as a result of a judgement by the UK Supreme Court. In the case of Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board, the court found last month that a pregnant woman most likely would have chosen to have a caesarean section had she been told about a risk relating to her child’s delivery. Shoulder dystocia – the inability of the baby’s shoulders to pass through the pelvis – occurred during the baby’s delivery and he was born with severe disabilities because of a lack of oxygen and nerve injury during the birth. The court endorsed a judgement in the High Court of Australia in 1992 which said a healthcare professional should warn a patient of a risk if that patient was likely to find it significant. The judgement concluded
that this should occur even if the patient places greater significance on the risk ‘than the hypothetical reasonable patient might do’. London South Bank University reader in law and ethics Louise Terry said that as a result, nurses must consider patients’ individual characteristics when discussing treatment risks and alternatives.
Reading the patient
‘There needs to be dialogue between the healthcare professional and the patient to identify what the patient is likely to consider significant in terms of their life,’ she said. Dr Terry added that nurses should consider whether a patient is a carer and has associated responsibilities when discussing treatment risks. She said nurses will have to ensure patients understand the risks associated with treatment and are aware of reasonable alternatives.
Pay rise would address staff shortfall in London A good salary is a significant factor for nurses and they tend to migrate to better salaried jobs when choices are available, according to research published by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The researchers reached their conclusions after examining the short-term flexibility of the nursing labour supply in Great Britain. They argue that a 10% pay rise could increase nurse numbers by about 7% in London, where relatively high numbers of ‘potential’ NHS nurses are in the private sector or non-nursing jobs. The effect elsewhere in Britain would be much smaller, however, with nurse numbers rising by less than 1% because would-be NHS nurses have fewer employment options than in London, the researchers believe. They argue that London-only pay rises should be considered, although other options – such as
introducing flexible hours – could be more cost effective. The IFS conclusions are highlighted in a working paper funded by the Economic Social and Research Council. The researchers compared the wages of NHS nurses with those of nurses employed outside the NHS, and also studied data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, published by the Office for National Statistics. Commenting on the findings, RCN head of policy Howard Catton said: ‘The research shows that in a competitive market, salary is beginning to be a more significant factor, particularly in areas of the country where there are a greater range
of employment opportunities. One way to address this is to increase the supply of nurses through the number of training places commissioned.’ Nursing workforce expert James Buchan, an honorary professor at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, added: ‘Nurses, like any other humans, will respond to more attractive alternatives. But the priority issue is workload. ‘This is where the NHS struggles to compete with the independent sector and non-nursing jobs, where people are more likely to be able to work Monday to Friday, nine to five.’ To read the report – The short run elasticity of National Health Service nurses’ labour supply in Great Britain – go to tinyurl.com/ IFSnurselaboursupply-report
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NURSES SCEPTICAL ABOUT TWO-WEEK DISCHARGE TARGET
Most nurses in Scotland do not believe the country’s new two-week patient discharge target will help reduce delays, a survey has found. Last week, the Scottish Government introduced the target that no hospital patient should wait more than two weeks to be discharged. But a Royal Voluntary Service study assisted by The King’s Fund think tank found 70% of the 50 nurses surveyed lack confidence in the measure. A total of 84% said delayed discharge is a serious problem where they work, and 66% said a lack of social care is the biggest cause of delayed discharge. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: ‘The health secretary has made clear that tackling delayed discharge must be a key priority for the government, NHS boards and local authorities. That is why we have committed £100 million over the next three years to address this issue.’
COURT RULING REINFORCES IMPORTANCE OF EXPLAINING TREATMENT RISKS CLEARLY Nurses will need to ensure patients understand the seriousness of their condition and the risks associated with proposed treatment as a result of a judgement by the UK Supreme Court. In the case of Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board, the court found last month that a pregnant woman most likely would have chosen to have a caesarean section had she been told about a risk relating to her child’s delivery. Shoulder dystocia – the inability of the baby’s shoulders to pass through the pelvis – occurred during the baby’s delivery and he was born with severe disabilities because of a lack of oxygen and nerve injury during the birth. The court endorsed a judgement in the High Court of Australia in 1992 which said a healthcare professional should warn a patient of a risk if that patient was likely to find it significant. The judgement concluded
that this should occur even if the patient places greater significance on the risk ‘than the hypothetical reasonable patient might do’. London South Bank University reader in law and ethics Louise Terry said that as a result, nurses must consider patients’ individual characteristics when discussing treatment risks and alternatives.
Reading the patient
‘There needs to be dialogue between the healthcare professional and the patient to identify what the patient is likely to consider significant in terms of their life,’ she said. Dr Terry added that nurses should consider whether a patient is a carer and has associated responsibilities when discussing treatment risks. She said nurses will have to ensure patients understand the risks associated with treatment and are aware of reasonable alternatives.
Pay rise would address staff shortfall in London A good salary is a significant factor for nurses and they tend to migrate to better salaried jobs when choices are available, according to research published by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The researchers reached their conclusions after examining the short-term flexibility of the nursing labour supply in Great Britain. They argue that a 10% pay rise could increase nurse numbers by about 7% in London, where relatively high numbers of ‘potential’ NHS nurses are in the private sector or non-nursing jobs. The effect elsewhere in Britain would be much smaller, however, with nurse numbers rising by less than 1% because would-be NHS nurses have fewer employment options than in London, the researchers believe. They argue that London-only pay rises should be considered, although other options – such as
introducing flexible hours – could be more cost effective. The IFS conclusions are highlighted in a working paper funded by the Economic Social and Research Council. The researchers compared the wages of NHS nurses with those of nurses employed outside the NHS, and also studied data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, published by the Office for National Statistics. Commenting on the findings, RCN head of policy Howard Catton said: ‘The research shows that in a competitive market, salary is beginning to be a more significant factor, particularly in areas of the country where there are a greater range
of employment opportunities. One way to address this is to increase the supply of nurses through the number of training places commissioned.’ Nursing workforce expert James Buchan, an honorary professor at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, added: ‘Nurses, like any other humans, will respond to more attractive alternatives. But the priority issue is workload. ‘This is where the NHS struggles to compete with the independent sector and non-nursing jobs, where people are more likely to be able to work Monday to Friday, nine to five.’ To read the report – The short run elasticity of National Health Service nurses’ labour supply in Great Britain – go to tinyurl.com/ IFSnurselaboursupply-report
NURSING april :: voluses 29without no 32 ::permission. 2015 9 DownloadedSTANDARD from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 23, 2015. For personal use only. No8other Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
