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September 2022 - Health

Two-thirds of nursing and healthcare educators say that staffing issues are among the greatest challenges they face: A survey by the Nursing Times in partnership with the Council of  Deans of Health CoDH  has revealed insight into the issues facing nursing and healthcare students and educators in the UK.

It found that academic staffing was the primary concern for respondents (67%), followed by staffing in clinical practice settings (63%) and general  pressures brought about by the pandemic (53%).

Other challenges cited included student attrition (49%), regulatory burden (41%) and getting enough nursing students to fill up courses (27%), while a quarter (25.5%) said they were feeling the strain of financial challenges. A smaller proportion of respondents said they had too many nurses seeking to begin a course in nursing (8%). 

One in 10 CoDH members said they had closed a course in the last 12 months, with reasons for this including academic staffing issues, challenges in recruiting students and a lack of placements available. There had also been internal discussions for 12% of respondents about closing a course in the coming academic year. 

When asked about the numbers of students applying to courses, the findings show that there has been an increase in interest in nursing, with 86% of CoDH members reporting that the number of students on courses has grown since the autumn of 2020, when we were in the midst of the pandemic.

Also revealed by the survey was that  only around half of the educators polled believed their students were being afforded dedicated time for clinical supervision on placements. This, says Nursing Times is 'despite recent emphasis on its importance from the Nursing and Midwifery Council.'

Fifty-one CoDH members were surveyed for the research, which revealed that 84% had experienced issues with placement accessibility. This was something that had been problematic during the height of Covid-19, however the issues are still being felt. 

Mental health 

Respondents were also asked some questions around mental health and wellbeing, with two-thirds (67%) saying that they felt their institution was doing enough to support student mental health. One in five (21%) said they were unsure as to whether their institution was doing enough, while 12% believe their institution is falling short. 

Two in five respondents said they believe there is enough being done to support staff wellbeing, however more than a third (35%) said they believe not enough is being done. A quarter said they were 'unsure'.

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