Wednesday 26 November,
from 9.30am, Committee Room 8, Palace of
Westminster
The Health and Social Care Committee will question
representatives of different sections of the NHS workforce –
including GPs, nurses, pharmacists and others – on addressing the
challenges of shifting care from hospitals to
neighbourhoods.
The Government has put shifting to a ‘neighbourhood' health
service at the heart of its 10-Year Health Plan to transform the
NHS.
There will be questions on how the Government can improve
recruitment and retention rates among the healthcare professions,
and on whether changes to immigration policy should be
implemented to provide visas for qualifying GPs from
abroad.
As of 2023, 73% of applications for GP specialist training came
from people whose medical qualifications were obtained abroad.
Meanwhile, it was reported in September 2024 that one in four
district nurses, who attend homes, had left the profession in the
previous year.
The Committee is likely to explore ways of tackling chronic
staffing issues and the opportunities of more community-focussed
health services. MPs may also ask about the training and
upskilling of the current workforce and the potential impact of
the move on allied health professionals, such as occupational
therapists and physiotherapists.
Witnesses from 9.30am:
- Professor Kamila Hawthone MBE, Chair of Council, Royal
College of General Practitioners;
- Steph Lawrence MBE, Chief Executive, The Queen's Institute of
Community Nursing;
- Amandeep Doll, Director for England, Royal Pharmaceutical
Society.
From 11.45am:
- Richard Evans OBE, Chair of the Allied Health Professionals
Federation Board & Chief Executive Officer of the Society and
College of Radiographers;
- Karen Poole, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.
- Tanya Rumney, Workforce Lead, British Dietetic
Association;
- Karin Orman, Director of Practice & Innovation, Royal
College of Occupational Therapists.
