After six weeks of emails, phone calls, and more emails I have finally secured permission to share the NHS hospital and community health services: Learning Disabilities Nursing staff figures for Health Education Kent, Surrey & Sussex area.
Headlines
- There are 217 RNLD’s working in the NHS across KSS as of July the 31st 2013
- There was a 3% decrease in full time equivalent staff between December 2012 and July 2013
- 36% of the workforce can retire within the next 10 years with those eligible for Mental Health officer status able to retire far sooner
- Surrey and boarders partnership NHS foundation trust are the largest employers of RNLD employing 45% of the whole workforce
Click here to download the data
Thank you to the Health and Social Care Information Centre for allowing us access and use this data
Workforce Development for & with People with Intellectual Disabilities 
George,
This is a remarkable piece of work, congratulations on pursuing it’s publication! It raises a whole host of questions, from the minutiae of whether my post has been counted, and the Surrey and Borders Nurse Consultant post have been counted, to the more weighty questions relating to the definitions of the 3 columns and who that may count. For instance I was not aware that our local partnership Trust provided many ‘Community Learning Disability Nurses’, although I know that they provide A&T services.
Will we get an opportunity to interrogate these numbers together at some point?
Daniel
Daniel
I think there would be value seeing how, these figures are come by in addition it was pointed out by HEKSS that if nurses where seconded into or out of KSS these figures are not included.
The data in its current format combined this data with the non-NHS data sends a clear message that we have more RNLD’s leaving the workforce that we are training or recruiting annually.
In addition I have been looking at estimated population data for LD across KSS today and the number of known individuals with LD appears to have increased between 2007 and 2011 by 0.018% annually. The most up to date population data will be publish in December this year http://www.hscic.gov.uk/ldcensus will be interesting to see if this trend continued during 2012/13.
George
Hi George,
thank you for all your hard work in bringing this issue to the forefront of LD Nursing & Care provision. I am sure continuous team efforts will enhance sustainability within our workforce and bring much needed attention to our profession. I was shocked to discover our already stretched group of qualified professionals due to dwindle even more over the next 10 years. All the more reason to look at how we can all contribute towards planning for the future and secure positive and safe futures for people with Intellectual Disabilities and qualified staff alike.