31/07/2017
According to a new report, Independent Care Homes in Scotland are facing a huge staffing crisis, leaving many of them on the breadline.
This crisis is largely due to recruitment difficulties and wage pressures, and has left many care homes in a state of emergency.
Scottish Care - the Industry Body - admits that the care sector is facing very real emergencies, which will include closures, unless immediate action is taken within a year.
A report from the Care Home Workforce revealed that the quality of care was being compromised because of recruitment problems.
A staggering four out of five care homes admit that they are struggling to recruit nurses, while 25% face problems recruiting front line staff. 35% of care homes battle to find managers.
Brexit has also had an impact on the situation, with 63% of care homes recruiting nurses from the EU, and 44% recruiting EU care staff. Some 77% of care homes now have vacancies which they battle to fill, and 21% admit that they have increased the use of agency nurses to fill positions.
Another negative statistic is that the turnover of care home staff has increased from 17% to 22% over the last two years. This is attributed mainly to wage problems, with many homes admitting that paying staff the Scottish Living Wage of £8.45 an hour has made the industry less inviting. While people may start a career in the care sector, they would not remain in it as the wages are so low.
Dr Donald Macaskill, Scottish Care Chief Executive Officer states that it is a constant struggle to recruit new staff, and hold on to existing staff. He admits that – putting things in a nutshell – care homes simply cannot continue to survive on the breadline. The shortage of nurses is extremely disturbing, and resources are completely inadequate.
Macaskill agrees that discussions are now at a critical stage, and unless real and positive actions are realised, along with the inclusion of adequate funding, care homes in Scotland will find themselves in a state which will be irretrievable.
Many smaller care homes are closing because they just cannot survive any longer. Macaskill made a point of saying that it is incumbent on government at both local and national levels to face the dangers that are threatening the care sector. If this realisation and positive response does not take place within a year, the care sector as a whole, will be in a very real emergency situation. Many more care homes will be forced to close, and quality of care will suffer.
