It’s not that nurses “can’t be arsed” it’s that the role has fundamentally changed over the past 30–40 years. Modern nursing is far more complex and clinically focused than it used to be.
Registered nurses are now responsible for care planning, discharge coordination (often starting on admission), referrals to allied health professionals, MDT working, supervising students and newly qualified staff, administering medications (including IV therapy), and maintaining detailed, legally accountable documentation. At the same time, patients are more acutely unwell and have increasingly complex needs.
When you factor in chronic staffing shortages and resource constraints, it simply isn’t always possible for nurses to deliver all elements of hands-on personal care alongside these responsibilities.
That said, compassionate care absolutely matters, and it should never feel absent, that’s a valid concern and something the profession continues to reflect on and improve.
HCA's key role is providing personal care, allowing the RN to complete the care he/she is qualified to do.
There is also, at times, a tendency in the UK to view nursing through somewhat rose-tinted glasses focusing on how the role used to be, without fully recognising how much it has advanced and expanded. Alongside that, nurses often feel there is less appreciation of the complexity and responsibility of the modern role compared to some other countries.
I do agree that the standard of hospital food in the UK is very poor, and that has real implications for patients with conditions like heart failure and diabetes. Nutrition should be treated as part of clinical care, not an afterthought. I'm from an EU country where catering is done in house and patients choose their meals from a menu. Meals are also tailored for those with diabetes, cardiac and renal issues.