Vince Cable

West Middlesex Hospital Reveals Agency Staff Spending Still Too High

Statistics published by West Middlesex hospital NHS Trust this week show just how much of our public money is still being wasted on agency nursing and medical staff.

In the late 1990's, West Middlesex's expenditure on non-NHS nursing staff was well below £600,000, but by 2002 it had rocketed to just under £3 million. Today it remains around the £1.5 million mark, while the expenditure on agency medical staff (.e.g locum doctors), negligible in 1997, is now well over the £1 million mark.

In response to these statistics MP Vincent Cable commented:

"Although West Middlesex's figures for 2004-5 indicate the situation is improving the fact is that spending on agency staff is still too high. The NHS is far too reliant on agency nurses. Millions of pounds of public money is being wasted on commissions when we should be concentrating on training more permanent staff to fill the vacancies in our hospitals and promote best practice."

"The rise in agency staff employed in our hospitals also presents a serious challenge to nursing staff in tackling the MRSA virus. The high staff turn-over means a rapid loss of skills and little sense of staff identity and responsibility with hospitals and patients."

"The need to address the issue is urgent if the hospital is going to wine the battle against MRSA and improve patient care".