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| A Trust spokesman denied jobseekers were involved in 'nursing or health care assistant roles' but instead 'helped support patients through their hospital experience' |
A scheme in which unpaid jobseekers help deliver patient care on NHS hospital
wards was attacked last night as being akin to health care “on the cheap”.
Dozens of unemployed people will work as “ward service assistants” at three
West Midlands hospitals, in which they help feed patients and clean wards.
The government-backed work experience scheme is set to be introduced across
Sandwell and West Birmingham hospitals trust following a successful pilot
scheme.
On Monday night, unions criticised the move as “health care on the cheap” amid
fears it showed a “worrying glimpse of the future”.
But the hospital defended the scheme, insisting jobseekers were not replacing
staff who provided clinical care to patients.
Participants did not carry out any duties requiring nursing training but
instead gained “valuable health care experience”.
The eight-week pilot scheme was operated at Sandwell Hospital, West Bromwich,
in which where six unemployed people helped with with the care for patients
on wards.
The jobseekers helped with general tidying, welcoming visitors, serving drinks to patients, running errands and reading to patients.
Officials insisted all six participants were subjected to checks by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and underwent two weeks of training at Sandwell College.
The group, identified by the red T-shirts, helped make “hot and cold drinks for patients”, helped feed them and collected medication from the hospital pharmacy.
They also helped with “general tidying, such as straightening up magazines on a bedside table or hanging up a dressing gown”. The scheme comes as the Trust attempts to find £125m worth of budget savings over the coming five years.
“Now the hospital is making moves to deliver health care on the cheap, by using people on work experience to help with patient care,” said Ravi Subramanian, the head of the Unison union in the West Midlands.
“Patients and staff will rightly be very worried about the standard of patient care as this scheme is rolled out.”
A Trust spokesman denied jobseekers were involved in “nursing or health care assistant roles” but instead “helped support patients through their hospital experience”.
“The project gave participants the opportunity to gain confidence, training and experience, under supervision,” she said.
“The pilot is now complete and, after further consultation with trade unions and managers, we are aiming to run similar programmes across our three hospitals and make a difference to the lives of local unemployed people, by giving them an opportunity to gain valuable health care experience.”
Pauline Jones, Account Manager at Jobcentre Plus, added that two of the participants were offered jobs outside the hospital following their placement.
The jobseekers helped with general tidying, welcoming visitors, serving drinks to patients, running errands and reading to patients.
Officials insisted all six participants were subjected to checks by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and underwent two weeks of training at Sandwell College.
The group, identified by the red T-shirts, helped make “hot and cold drinks for patients”, helped feed them and collected medication from the hospital pharmacy.
They also helped with “general tidying, such as straightening up magazines on a bedside table or hanging up a dressing gown”. The scheme comes as the Trust attempts to find £125m worth of budget savings over the coming five years.
“Now the hospital is making moves to deliver health care on the cheap, by using people on work experience to help with patient care,” said Ravi Subramanian, the head of the Unison union in the West Midlands.
“Patients and staff will rightly be very worried about the standard of patient care as this scheme is rolled out.”
A Trust spokesman denied jobseekers were involved in “nursing or health care assistant roles” but instead “helped support patients through their hospital experience”.
“The project gave participants the opportunity to gain confidence, training and experience, under supervision,” she said.
“The pilot is now complete and, after further consultation with trade unions and managers, we are aiming to run similar programmes across our three hospitals and make a difference to the lives of local unemployed people, by giving them an opportunity to gain valuable health care experience.”
Pauline Jones, Account Manager at Jobcentre Plus, added that two of the participants were offered jobs outside the hospital following their placement.
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