Nurses (Hansard, 18 June 1992)

§ Mrs. Dunwoody
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to decrease the work load of national health service nurses.

§ Mr. Sackville
It is for NHS employers to ensure that units are adequately staffed to meet the workload requirements and agreed standards and to ensure that there is no excessive work burden on individual nurses.

§ Mrs. Dunwoody
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to increase the training and support for community nurses when the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 comes into effect.

§ Mr. Sackville
It is for regional health authorities to calculate the overall demand for training non-medical staff, including community nurses and to top-slice sufficient funds for appropriate training places. The672W Department will be monitoring the way in which regions discharge this responsibility. We shall expect regions to co-ordinate their training plans with requirements identified in locally agreed community care plans.

§ Mrs. Dunwoody
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will consider establishing confidential counselling for nurses at the unit level at all national health service hospitals.

§ Dr. Mawhinney
The provision of counselling services for NHS staff is a matter for local management. Where appropriate, they may form part of the local occupational health service.