England’s NHS could be short around 55,000 registered nurses, more than twice the number suggested by official vacancy figures, according to new analysis. The short has already started resulting in some painful incidents.
According to the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) understaffing has contributed to patients waiting hours for pain relief and essential medicines, while others have fallen from hospital beds and suffered broken bones or brain bleeds.
Official figures showed 23,046 nursing vacancies in August but the RCN says counting advertised jobs doesn’t show how many nurses the NHS actually needs.
Its analysis found around 55,000 additional registered nurses would be required if staffing had kept pace with the growth in hospital activity since 2009/10.
Nurse numbers increased by just 1% over the past year, while experts estimate annual growth of between 2.5% and 5.7% is needed to meet demand.
The report also looked at hospital trust records for safety incidents linked to nursing shortages.
At some trusts, hundreds were being recorded every month.
One nurse described an elderly patient falling from bed and suffering a brain bleed during an understaffed night shift. Another reported patients waiting several hours for pain medication because there were simply not enough nurses available.
The RCN is now calling for more investment in nursing as the government prepares its NHS Workforce Plan.
It argues the problem isn’t simply about filling existing vacancies.The NHS needs tens of thousands of nursing positions that currently don’t exist.
2026-09-22 19:42:00
