I Refugio Aug 19, 2019 12:52:16 PM 22 min read

Care Home Closure: The Growing Crisis

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The Nursing Times recently reported that South Lodge Care Home in Leicestershire will have nurses removed from their care home effective 5 November 2019. 

_105087408_chart-nhsvacancyrates-usrjt-ncAfter 18 months of failed recruitment efforts and over-reliance on agency staff, Avery Healthcare, the owner of South Lodge Care Home, has announced that they will have to cancel the element of their registration that is required to operate as a nursing home. A total of 12 nursing residents will be affected by this change, and current nursing staff will also be re-assigned. Families of residents are burdened with worries over the care of their loved ones, but care home closure is hardly a new thing in the UK ever since the nursing crisis began. 

Since 2014, 400 care homes have closed in the UK due to issues such as budget cuts, debt, and rising costs. In the first six months of 2016, a total of 73 care homes cancelled their registration due to recruiting problems. According to Andrea Sutcliffe, former chief inspector of adult social care at the CQC, recruitment and retention of nurses are the biggest issues that care providers face. Reports of bad working conditions also surface from time to time, making it harder for care providers to attract and retain nurses. Reliance on agency nurses is unsustainable for most care homes as well, given that agency rates are higher than staff rates. Care providers not only have to pay an average of £22 per hour for an agency nurse, but agency fees can go up to £28, which means that a nursing home would be paying a total of £50 per hour

It's not just care homes in the private sector that are experiencing recruitment and retention issues. Many NHS Trusts are spending up to seven times more than they budgeted on hiring agency nurses. Reliance on agencies costs £1800 per day per nurse for the NHS, and savings could go up to £480 million if use of agency nurses is limited.

wheelchair-3948122_1920With residents and patients in need, care providers should put more focus into avoiding staffing crises and facility closures. The recruitment of overseas nurses is the ideal solution to these problems, and IANS is paving the way forward. Working with IANS to solve the nursing crisis offers many advantages: 

1. By only shortlisting nurses with IELTS and CBT for interview, IANS ensures that the nurses can arrive in the UK in 4-6 weeks, and earn their PIN at least 12 days after their arrival. 

2. By offering immigration, recruitment, and training under one roof, we cut out all the middlemen and ensure that the process is swift. Average timelines for nurse deployment can take up to 18 months, but with IANS, we ensure that they pass their exams and are deployed to the UK in 3-6 months. 

3. By hiring international nurses, you increase retention rate, cut down on agency spend, and change lives. Overseas nurses are contracted to work for their employer for 3 years under their visa, which means that reliance on agency nurses is curtailed.

These nurses are venturing out into a new life with a desire to help and begin anew, so this is your chance to help us change lives. 

If you wish to know more about overseas nursing recruitment and the savings you will acquire, please come to our Care Providers Seminar in Guildford on Monday 30 September 2019. Not only will you learn about our tried and tested process, you will also hear our success stories and you will be introduced to your next nurse hire for a registration fee of £1500* and interview the nurse on the same day! Plus, you don't want to miss this chance to mingle with fellow care providers in your area and widen your business network! Click the image below to find out more and register! 

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You will be amazed by the success and potential that you can obtain just by attending the event! Just ask Basu Lamicchane, General Manager of Victoria Care. Two weeks after attending the event in London on 18 July 2019, his company's sponsor license application has been submitted, nurse candidates have been interviewed, and 2 nursing vacancies have been filled. 

"IANS has changed my perception on overseas recruitment. My concerns were all answered in the Care Providers Seminar. IANS gave us the confindence and trust that they know everything about recruitment"
                                                                                                                                        - Basu Lamicchane

Sources: 
https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news/leicester-news/care-home-removes-nurses-facility-3195633
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-37496349
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/whitchurch-christian-care-home-closing-2810730
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/nov/01/nhs-spending-agency-nurses-cuts
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-100135/Agency-nursing-costs-450m.html
https://improvement.nhs.uk/news-alerts/nhs-could-free-480m-limiting-use-temporary-staffing-agencies/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/nhs-agency-locum-doctors-nurses-bank-staff-improvement-spending-a8514871.html
Image from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-46782159

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