Copyright newsletter
The health minister’s announcement that the Executive has found the money to bring health workers’ pay here in line with their counterparts in the rest of the UK is welcome news. It should be a morale boost for health and social care workers, who are entitled to the same remuneration as their colleagues in the rest of the country. Staff are under serious pressure, particularly in our hospitals as winter pressures begin to bite. In general, they provide good care to people when they need it most, under very challenging circumstances. While the Executive has found the money on this occasion, the confusion over whether and when it could be delivered – and the political spats over where the money would come from is indicative of a wider problem. All politicians at Stormont should know that the current situation – lurching from crisis to crisis – is not sustainable. They also know that fundamental reforms are required if a better standard of care is to be provided. There are many problems, but key issues need to be addressed – such as rationalising the hospital estate. There have been welcome moves in this direction, such as the centralisation of certain services. Today we report on a warning from the General Medical Council that Northern Ireland – along with Scotland and Wales – is struggling to retain GPs. Less than half of the doctors who graduated from our medical schools in 2024 chose to stay here – compared to 81% in England. The factors involved in that are likely to be much more complex than the state of the NHS in the province, but it is an issue which needs to be addressed by the whole executive. NI cannot afford to add to the pressures facing staff – let alone allow the service to slide further for the people who rely on it.
