§ Mr. Pavittasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will institute a departmental inquiry into the prevalence and causes of stress among nurses.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeNo. We do not consider that there is evidence which indicates that such an inquiry is justified. I am aware that the results of a survey by theNursing Mirror purport to demonstrate that a majority of nurses suffer high levels of stress. However, I understand that the survey represents the views of a self-selected sample of only 1,000 nursing staff (out of a total nursing staff of 400,000 in England) who completed a questionnaire published in the Nursing Mirror at a time when we were awaiting the review bodies' recommendations on their pay. We cannot therefore accept that this is a representative and objective national picture.
Nursing is a demanding and sometimes stressful job, but nurses are trained to meet those demands. We have demonstrated the respect and high regard in which we hold the profession by our decisions on their pay and training. Between April 1979 and February 1986 nurses' basic pay rates will have risen on average by 111 per cent., which is over 30 per cent., ahead of the forecast rise in prices over the same period. We have reduced their working week without loss of pay from 40 to 371/2 hours. Between September 1979 and September 1984 an extra 39,500 whole-time equivalents have been employed in England.
We have also set up the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting arid the four national boards so that the nursing profession could become largely self-governing in determining future patterns of education and training. All these statutory bodies are collaborating on proposals for change. The English national board has already produced draft proposals. We have encouraged the board to consult the profession, and are ourselves consulting health authorities on these proposals which will reduce the ward responsibilities of student nurses and given them more theoretical work in their first two years of training. This is aimed, in part, at reducing the stress amongst beginners exposed too early to heavy responsibilities as well as improving the quality of service given to patients.