Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle shortages in anaesthetic workforce in the forthcoming Elective Recovery Plan.

The government appreciates the dedication of Anaesthetists in the National Health Service. As of July 2021, there was an increase of 2.3% in full time equivalent (FTE) doctors and 2.0% FTE Specialty doctors and associate specialists working in the NHS in anaesthesia compared to a year ago. We have increased the number of medical school places in England by 25% increase from 2018/2019 to 2020/2021, helping ensure a larger potential pipeline for anaesthetists in coming years.

Staff retention is a priority for this Government. It was noted in the recent report by the Royal College of Anaesthetists about retention that there is particular concern about those leaving at the start and end of their career, resulting in targeted interventions to encourage them to stay. These include pension support, access to health and wellbeing initiatives, flexible working opportunities, and mentoring and coaching.

NHS England and NHS Improvement will publish a plan for recovering elective services later this year.