Through startling figures, Breast Cancer Care has highlighted the shortage of specialist breast cancer nurses, stating that the increase in number of breast cancer patients by a fifth is putting extra load on the already overworked nurses.
More and more women are being diagnosed with breast cancer and there has been an 18 per cent increase in the number of breast cancer patients in a decade taking the number of patients from 38,153 in 2003 to 44,831 in 2013; however, the number of specialist breast cancer nurses – also known as clinical nurse specialists – has remained constant at 434 throughout England since 2007.
Breast Cancer Care has warned that the lack of new nurses will put pressure on the nurses and will hamper the quality of care that is provided to the patients.
Samia al Qadhi, Chief Executive at Breast Cancer Care, said: “Breast cancer nurses do a fantastic job but they are under more and more pressure to provide the same quality of care with much less time, more responsibilities and many more patients.”
Highlighting the increase in number of women who are being diagnosed with breast cancer, the charity notes that the increase in number of cases is largely due to an ageing population with breast cancer affecting older women more. Further, lifestyle factors such as increased alcohol consumption and higher obesity levels, is also playing a role in increased number of breast cancer cases.
More people now survive a breast cancer diagnosis than ever. But many face debilitating side effects of the disease and its treatment, and this increases the workload of nurses further, the charity notes.
Clinical nurse specialists play a very important role in the health care system as they provide essential medical, practical and emotional care from diagnosis onwards. There have been studies that prove that patients who are constantly in touch with a nurse specialist report significantly better treatment and care.
The charity cites Cancer Strategy recommendation and is calling upon NHS England to adopt the recommendations and think about how can the recommendations be turned into a reality.
