Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Work

Chat with other users about all things related to working life on our Work forum.

Original poster

Wasted NHS team of nurses

31 replies

Anon67592 · 02/10/2023 21:22

I joined a team of band 6 nurses nearly 5 years ago to carry out this large project. The project is pretty much complete and our team now currently stands at 15 band 6 nurses. For some reason everyone is one permanent contracts.

We now are in a strange situation where there is not enough day to day work to keep us all busy, emails and phone calls to the office can easily be handled by 4/5 people and if we have cross site commitments that's enough for another 3/4 people.

The boss tends to stay working from home and has been a very hands off manager who only really steps in when people moan to him about colleagues.

A few people seem to be getting pulled up for not "pulling their weight" although this seems like a crazy accusation since there just isn't enough to do.

The solution would be for some people to leave and not be replaced yet the job is so easy and decent money that no one will leave.

I can imagine most people would think what is the problem but the office is becoming toxic and I can't imagine it's a great use of NHS resources for us all to be sat around doing nothing. To make matters worse we have 2 more coming back from mat leave next year.

What would you do....

Keep quiet and just crack on?
Raise this anonymously to someone in HR and get the team redeployed somewhere useful?
Leave?

OP posts:
Notcookie · 02/10/2023 21:24

I would speak to your manager and ask what the plan is now that there isn't sufficient work for the team. It might sound good but it will get really depressing and demoralising not having anything to do. Let alone the immorality of fleecing the taxpayer!

Sorrento79 · 02/10/2023 21:36

If you're not happy then you can leave. I wouldn't think it worth the potential dramas to try and make a big thing of it, everyone involved will be quite enjoying the cushy job and no one will thank you for throwing a spanner in the works. FWIW I think there are a huge amount of underemployed people in the nhs, most of them make work for themselves by causing troubke for others in my experience

LorraineBainMcFly · 02/10/2023 21:39

What's your remit, and can I either join the team or have some staff as our wards are fucked with never enough staff!

littleducks · 02/10/2023 21:42

Presumably there is a plan for once the project is actually over and there will be a consultation and whole team shifted? Even if you have permanent contacts you can be made redundant

Muchtoomuchtodo · 02/10/2023 21:42

I would whistleblow and start looking for another job.

Most health boards are horrendously overspent and this sounds like an unforgivable waste of money, especially with so many other departments being so badly understaffed.

KakiFruit · 02/10/2023 21:44

What outcome do you want?

For management to create more work - is this possible?

For others to be sacked but you keep your job- how likely is that?

For you to be sacked so the decision is taken out of your hands?

Original poster
Anon67592 · 02/10/2023 21:54

There seems to have been no plan in place for what would happen once this project ended.

Ideally if I whistleblew some of us might start to get sent to help out on the wards which might in turn cause a few people to leave. Personally I wouldn't mind if this happened.

The boss and his superiors would look like idiots if they went to make redundancies but I don't know how that would work for everyone.. would it be last ones in first ones out?

The boss tries his best to make work but it's not really possible and his communication about all of these issues is zero to none... the last time the whole team were together for a 'meeting' was last December....

OP posts:
Original poster
Anon67592 · 02/10/2023 21:56

Oh and for more wastage of resources... when working cross site most of the team use non patient transport that's booked in advance. Usually we finish by 2pm on these days as well even though we are mostly contracted till 6pm

OP posts:
Sorrento79 · 03/10/2023 05:13

Honestly I think you should leave rather than try and essentially get others into a situation they don't want to be in. Why wouldn't you leave to go do some more clinical work?

Tanfastic · 03/10/2023 05:16

Wow, can our team borrow a few? I've never heard of this in the NHS, everyone I know is running round like headless chickens going above and beyond. Surely the answer is redeployment to other teams? I know in our team there are regular meetings with hierarchy where other teams are always begging for help.

user1492757084 · 03/10/2023 05:24

Definitely speak to management.
Brain storm in your communication about other places you all could be better utilized and suggest that you are really looking forward to new work options, being employed on another team etc - whatever the management decides but, in all fairness, the current situation needs to change.
You will be loosing skills unless you work more.
The BOSS should get many Brownie points for raising this high up with NHS.
If nothing is done then you raise the issue higher up.

Doyouthinktheyknow · 03/10/2023 05:35

I would raise my concerns via management and freedom to speak up guardian and actively look for another job.

itonlyhappensonce · 03/10/2023 05:36

Contact the Trust's finance or PMO department and let them know. They'll be looking at cost improvements.

Oblomov23 · 03/10/2023 05:38

This is so poor. What awful planning, what a waste of money. NHS inefficiency at its worst.

LongFaulks · 03/10/2023 06:29

Is any aspect of the role patient-facing?

If not I would be seriously concerned that the longer you stay the more de-skilled you are becoming clinically.

Having recently been an interviewer for B6 nursing staff the expectation (from our trust anyway) is that you would bring multiple examples from your current job to evidence you were suitable for the one you were applying for. If you’re rusting-out in this current job it will be extremely challenging for you to apply for further B6 clinical roles if you’re up against nurses who have been working like demons away at the coal face accruing experience the whole time.
Theres a good chance I wouldn’t even short list you for interview if you couldn’t evidence recent solid clinical experience.

LongFaulks · 03/10/2023 06:31

I’d also LOVE to know what sort of project requires 15 B6 nurses for 5+ years!
[nosey]

Original poster
Anon67592 · 03/10/2023 07:50

Thanks for all the feedback. @LongFaulks the deskilling is real and many of us still do bank work on the side to keep the skills but it's not the same and I do worry the longer I stay the more I will be stuck. The project btw was a large rollout of a clinical system requiring training of 5000+ staff and ward support.

OP posts:
MoserRothOrangeandAlmond · 03/10/2023 08:07

As a fellow band 6 nurse who's rushed off her feet I would like some more band 6/nurse practitioners in my team.

Why don't you apply for the many jobs that are out there?

Photio · 03/10/2023 08:13

LongFaulks · 03/10/2023 06:31

I’d also LOVE to know what sort of project requires 15 B6 nurses for 5+ years!
[nosey]

I'd also like to know how they managed to recruit so many in the first place.
We have B6 vacancies no-one applied for , the skills shortage out there is very real

MoserRothOrangeandAlmond · 03/10/2023 08:18

Then if they ask the reason for leaving... simply say there is no work for you to do.

I would also worry about de skilling.
For example: I've been a band 6 for 6 years and I triage assess, diagnose and treat patients with minor injury and illness in their homes, give IV Abx at home, out of hour/unplanned district nurse visits and out of hours palliative care. I also train band 5s to go into this role.

From what you describe you have been doing etc our band 5 nurses are more qualified/experienced for the job

Missingthegore · 03/10/2023 08:21

Your boss has a boss

Ask them what the plan is.

You can always apply for other roles.

IkaBaar · 03/10/2023 08:22

Was it role out of something like Hepma? Surely there is no chance of making nurses redundant wouldn’t you just end up on the redeployment register? Can you say something whilst looking for other roles?

YouMeThem · 03/10/2023 08:26

What a horrible waste of money.
I think id make a huge amount of noise to anyone who would listen. It's surprising that so many nurses are complicit in this. 🙁
Do you talk about the moral side of this when you are together? Surely you can't be the only one who has reservations?

Wrongsideofpennines · 03/10/2023 08:39

I don't think you even need to go down Freedom to speak up or whistleblowing. Just have an open conversation with your manager. Presumably you're having some form of supervision or appraisal so this is the kind of thing to bring up. There must be a plan for the team, it's really unlikely anyone will be made redundant, you'll most likely be redeployed to elsewhere in the Trust. They might be keeping you as some kind of project management team and they are waiting until the next thing is ready before telling you what it is.

But I think you owe it to the trust, the wider NHS and your colleagues to find out what the plan is first before just leaving.

Pythonesque · 03/10/2023 08:43

Seek a secondment perhaps?

Swipe left for the next trending thread