STAFF CRISIS: Numbers compare badly

Only Poland has fewer medical staff, research on 21 nations revealed. Experts say it puts the UK in the “relegation zone” of the developed world.

We have 2.8 doctors per 1,000 of the population – half that of Austria – and 7.9 nurses per 1,000 people.

There are just 2.6 hospital beds for every 1,000 Brits, a third less than Germany, the analysis of Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development figures found.

Siva Anandaciva, of health charity The King’s Fund, said: “If the 21 countries were a football league then the UK would be in the relegation zone in terms of the resources we put into our healthcare system.

“The UK is consistently below average in the resources we give the NHS relative to countries such as France and Germany.”

The King’s Fund report also claims the NHS needs another £10billion a year.

The Government said think tank the Commonwealth Fund had ranked the NHS the world’s best health service.

Source: DailyStar