Hiring freeze at dozens of NHS cancer and diagnostic units despite rising referrals | Cancer

Dozens NHS Hospitals have banned their cancer or diagnostic departments from hiring new staff, even as GPs continue to refer more people they fear may have the disease.

Doctors warned that the widespread recruitment freezes imposed on both types of units last year could undermine Keir Starmer’s momentum, he explained this weekto reduce waiting times for NHS care.

Research from the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) found that 42 NHS trusts or health boards across the UK have told their cancer centers or diagnostic units not to recruit additional staff in 2024. Financial problems in the NHS appear to explain what it describes as “myopic freezes”.

Both types of services are already struggling to cope with the ever-increasing demand for diagnostic tests and cancer treatment caused by the UK’s aging and sicker population, leaving patients waiting for X-rays and scans before starting treatment can.

“Imposing a hiring freeze in the cancer and diagnostics departments is an extraordinarily short-sighted decision,” said Dr. Katharine Halliday, the university’s president. “These departments are already struggling with staffing shortages and overwhelming workloads.

“A hiring freeze will only worsen delays in patient diagnosis and treatment while further undermining the morale of hard-working NHS staff.”

Such bans “undermine important efforts to reduce delays for patients and improve early cancer detection,” she added.

The Prime Minister will be unable to keep his promise made on Monday that 92% of patients needing hospital care will receive it within 18 weeks by spring 2029 if units carrying out such vital roles continue to be prevented from recruiting new staff need to stop, warned Halliday.

“The Prime Minister is right to focus on reducing NHS backlogs,” she said. “But it’s just not realistic if we don’t have the workforce. And hiring freezes directly contradict the government’s bold ambitions.”

The RCR’s annual survey of cancer and diagnostic services across the UK found the following:

• A recruitment freeze was imposed last year for 13 of 54 cancer centers (24.1%), as well as for 29 of 150 (19.3%) radiology departments.

• The 42 recruitment bans were imposed by 40 different NHS trusts or bodies.

• At least one freeze has been imposed in each of England’s four home countries and regions.

A cancer service manager told the RCR that increasing demand for improved chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments, coupled with workforce shortages and inadequate funding, “means [cancer] Clinics are increasingly overbooked.”

Samantha Harrison, Head of Strategic Evidence at Cancer Research UK said: “Despite the best efforts of NHS staff, cancer patients are waiting too long for vital tests and treatment. Cancer services have been lacking the resources they need for years and this report highlights the real impact this has on people affected by cancer.”

She said the government’s upcoming new cancer plan for England must “include substantial reforms and important investment in staff and equipment”. Without this, the cancer workforce will continue to struggle and cancer patients will not receive the timely care they deserve.”

An NHS England spokesperson said: “We have developed a number of initiatives to improve patient access to cancer diagnostic services to help ensure more cancers are detected early.

“Early diagnosis is incredibly important in cancer treatment and more cancers than ever before are being detected early. This is thanks to the NHS’s major initiative over the last two years to encourage millions of people to come forward for potentially life-saving checks.”