Addressing Staff Shortages in NHS Learning Disability Services

This report examines the challenges faced by the National Health Service (NHS) in providing learning disability services, with a specific focus on the critical issue of staff shortages. The report identifies how staff shortages negatively impact the quality of care, leading to potential errors, increased mortality rates, and burnout among healthcare professionals. To address these challenges, the report proposes solutions such as implementing workforce plans, international recruitment strategies, and comprehensive training programs to enhance the skills and knowledge of existing staff. The report also suggests practical implementation steps, including specific objectives, timelines, and evaluation methods, such as smart analysis, to ensure the effectiveness of the proposed solutions. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of stakeholder involvement and feedback to continuously improve the delivery of learning disability services within the NHS.

Learning disability services

Table of Contents
TASK 1......................................................................................................................................3
Explaining the challenges face by NHS while providing learning disability services..........3
TASK 2......................................................................................................................................4
Determine the solution in order to address the challenged identified in above task..............4
TASK 3......................................................................................................................................5
How the company could practically implement the solution identified in task.....................5
REFERNCES.............................................................................................................................8

TASK 1
Explaining the challenges face by NHS while providing learning disability services
Shortage of staff is one of the key challenging issues which helps in providing
learning disability services. The shortage of staff within the learning disabilities tends to
hamper the goals and objectives of the company. The learning disability service which helps
in supporting the complex needs of the person. It is highly significant in providing the best
possible support to the people in order to live the best possible life and helps in effectively
carrying out the day to day operations of the business (Jones and et.al., 2020). Shortage of
staff is considered to be as one of the biggest challenge for the hospitality sector because it
leads to lack of appropriate level of support and leads to ineffective care support from the
other members of the company. Shortage of learning disability tends to have crisis problems
and may affect the health care outcomes and results in poor outcomes. The NHS England is
way too slow to perform their duties because of lack of staff. The Nursing shortages within
the NHS eventually leads to high degree of error which eventually leads to higher mortality
rates and morbidity. The ratio of patients higher than the health care nursing practitioner
results in burnout experience among the nurses and also results in dissatisfaction and high
degree of stress rate. The shortage of staff results in higher mortality among the patient which
in turn affects the health and outcome of the patient who are seeking learning disability
services (Kaixuan, 2020). The learning disability is mainly caused by some effect the
development of the brain. The learning disability is mainly caused by the wide set of factors
which results in wide set of learning disabilities.
There are various degree of organizational as well as the environmental factors which
results in the staff shortages. The staff shortage within the hospital results in dissatisfaction
among the patients. The shortage of the staff is considered to be substantial across the
hospitals. The learning disability tends to state that, the people find it significantly harder to
effectively attain certain set of life skills (Iacobucci, 2019). The learning disability problems
which in turn has been experienced tends to vary from the person to person. People who have
mild learning disabilities to effectively live on an independent basis with the minimal support
from the staff. On the other hand, people who tends to have profound and severe set of
disabilities in turn largely influence the living skills. Such people in turn require wide set of
care and outcomes from the medical staff. People with learning disabilities need extensive
care and support from the person.

This is significant in improving the care results and outcomes. Right degree of care
and support is useful for the people who have learning disability issues and problems. With
the right set of care and support the people who are seeking learning disability issues within
the NHS can live a meaningful life. The staff who does not have adequate degree of
knowledge, experience or skill without giving them appropriate training upon the learning
disability service in NHS (Robertson, 2018). It is very important to take proper needs of the
care. It is considered to be highly significant in effectively improving the care needs and
solution to the people in order to live the best possible life. However, lack of support from the
staff is one of the key challenge which is mainly associated with the providing of learning
disability services to the staff.
TASK 2
Determine the solution in order to address the challenged identified in above task
For learning abilities, NHS faces issue related to shortage of staff such that it do not
have expertise in order to solve the query of patients. Hence, to improve the shortage of staff,
NHS implement the workforce plan with a target budget in order to expand the number of
nurses, midwives and AHPs and other staff so that their patients are treated in well manner
(NHS long term Plan, 2019). Under this, international recruitment plan is also establish which
help to provide an opportunities to other people expect UK to provide their services within
NHS. It has been analyzed that more people want to get training and that is why they join
NHS while many of them leave NHS when they get better opportunity, while many of them
fired because of poor service. Hence by implementing the workforce implementation plan,
NHS tries to get rid of the challenge and provide service that assist to improve the quality of
life of their patients as well.
Moreover, this plan also implementing by providing effective training programs
which in turn leads to improve the skills of their employees so that they treat the patient in
better manner (Xu, Intrator and Bowblis, 2020). As another reason of shortage of staff is due
to negative working environment and that is why, most of them leave the working place, so
proper one to one session should be done that helps to analyze the actual issue face by the
employees and try to take action accordingly. Training to the existing staff is one of the key
prominent measure which helps in improving the care outcomes and leads to better results
and outcomes. This way it helps in developing the skills of the individual person and provide

the best possible care services to the people who has been seeking care associated with the
learning disability service. Proper technical training must be given to the staff of the hospital
which is useful in carrying out the task with utmost degree of accuracy and relevance. This
helps in effectively improving the knowledge of work and carry out the roles and
responsibilities to improve the operational growth and efficiency (Iacobucci, 2020).
Complete set of e- learning and appropriate mentoring from the experience care practitioner
is useful in providing the best possible care needs and outcomes related with the learning
disability service.
The staff of the company must be continuously monitored and must be provided with the best
possible care and support and leads to higher operational growth and services. Trained staff
within the NHS for learning disability services is useful in providing the best possible quality
care services and helps in handling the various set of critical solution. It is useful in abiding
within the infection control protocols and also various other code of conduct and procedures
to improve the health results and outcomes (Denicke-Polcher and Lawin-O'Brien, 2020).
Continuous training helps in keeping the employees competent and also at the par.
Furthermore, training helps in improving the staff productivity and keeps them motivated. It
also useful in assuring that they are valued, and also helps in improving the retention
capability and loyalty of the staff. It is useful in improving the operational efficiency and
improves the performance.
TASK 3
How the company could practically implement the solution identified in task
With the help of smart analysis, the above mention action is implemented within NHS
in order to overcome the challenge of Shortage of staff. These plan is specific, measurable
and achievable that helps to minimize the issue up to some level.
Specific objectives Approach Model
To overcome the problem of
Shortage of staff
In order to improve the
problem face by NHS,
workforce implementation
plan is organized that should
be applied by HR of
Company. Such that HR
should be more careful
Smart Analysis as a model is
implemented in order to
make sure that the define
solution is applicable for the
NHS and minimize the
challenge u to some level.

during recruiting and
effective training should be
applied in order to make
their employees expert in
their specific field.
Moreover, NHS should start
contracting with more
medical colleges in order to
hire new interns so that
shortage of staff is
minimized (Nyashanu,
Pfende and Ekpenyong,
2020).
Stage 1:
Input
In order to implement the plan in NHS, company should
expand the number of nurses, midwives and other staff up
to 5% so that staff members are increased. On the other
hand, NHS should start enabling the productive workings
which means improve technology and use e-job plans that
will be support staff. Also make sure that two to three shifts
are perform with 8 hours so that it will help the staff to
make themselves comfortable.
Stage 2:
Action and Timeline
In order to expand the working staff, NHS should start
international recruitment plan and for that online
recruitment strategy should be used that will assist to
minimize the challenge and provide an opportunity to other
country’s people. Moreover, for each new candidate, NHS
should set up the training which is also called, probation
period in which employee come to know the rules and
regulation, and try to make comfortable (Taylor, 2020).
This plan is for 3 months and then different offers and
rewards are also organized in order to let the employees
happy within a working area.
Thus, reward and bonus are implemented within every

quarter for employee’s high performance and this in turn
help to encourage them and motivate them as well.
Also, NHS England review the plan and monitor the
strategies implemented by the company and also suggest
the changed if any so that the problem is minimized easily.
Stage 3:
Delivery and Evaluation
Once the plan is implemented, NHS should involve all the
stakeholders within a decision making process so that they
suggest the changes if required. Also, for evaluating, NHS
should take feedback from the staff and resident and ask
them if any changes is required from their side. On the
other side, a survey can also be conducted in which
questions are asked that helps to analyze the performance
and determine the issue if they face any.
Also, in order to minimize the problem of shortage, it is
also suggested to the NHS that they start implement the
program related to volunteer so that staff of the company
will be doubled and this in turn leads to minimize the
problem and even patients are also treated in well manner.
Moreover, they should start implementing the
benchmarking tool in which standards are set that helps to
meet the define aim and compare the standards with others
so get proper results.

REFERNCES
Books and Journals
Combes, J.B., Elliott, R.F. and Skåtun, D., 2018. Hospital staff shortage: the role of the
competitiveness of pay of different groups of nursing staff on staff shortage. Applied
Economics. 50(60). pp.6547-6552.
Denicke-Polcher, S. and Lawin-O'Brien, A., 2020. Making masks for maternity staff. British
Journal of Midwifery. 28(5). pp.284-285.
Iacobucci, G., 2019. Ongoing GP shortage puts NHS long term plan at risk, warn
experts. BMJ: British Medical Journal (Online).364.
Iacobucci, G., 2020. Covid-19: Hospitals can remove 15% cap on testing of NHS staff.
Jones, C.P. and et.al., 2020. ‘Would you like to join the NHS Organ Donor Register?’A
general practice feasibility study. British Journal of General Practice. 70(suppl 1).
Jones-Berry, S., 2017. ‘No coherent workforce plan’as NHS nurse shortage worsens. Nursing
Standard (2014+). 32(11). p.12.
Kaixuan, L.I., 2020. Why the Italian NHS Has Rapidly Reached Its Maximum Capacity in
COVID-19 Pandemic?.
Nyashanu, M., Pfende, F. and Ekpenyong, M., 2020. Exploring the challenges faced by
frontline workers in health and social care amid the COVID-19 pandemic: experiences
of frontline workers in the English Midlands region, UK. Journal of Interprofessional
Care, pp.1-7.
Robertson, R., 2018. Public satisfaction with NHS decreasing. PharmacoEconomics &
Outcomes News. 798. pp.3-10.
Taylor, M., 2020. Why is there a shortage of doctors in the UK?. The Bulletin of the Royal
College of Surgeons of England.102(3). pp.78-81.
Xu, H., Intrator, O. and Bowblis, J.R., 2020. Shortages of Staff in Nursing Homes During
COVID-19 Pandemic: What Are the Driving Factors?. Journal of the American
Medical Directors Association.
Online
NHS long term Plan. 2019. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.hfma.org.uk/docs/default-source/default-document-library/the-nhs-long-
term-plan---a-summary.pdf?sfvrsn=0%20pp.4>.