29th November 2022, London – Florence, the healthcare platform using technology to help tackle the shortage of healthcare staff globally, has launched a new Pathway to Care programme. The free course is designed to help school leavers (15-19 yr olds) learn key skills and build experience ahead of starting a Care Certificate or a nursing degree.
The Pathway to Care course has been designed to teach and build key skills for young people, giving them a head start before embarking on their healthcare journey.
The online course is easily accessible and has been designed by experts at Florence and will set young people up for a rewarding career in care. Young people can develop skills at their own pace, and receive a certificate on completion. The 11 modules will guide young people through the basics of adult social care.
Shockingly recent statistics show that the NHS has a vacancy rate of 11.8%, naturally having a subsequent impact on the quality of care.
A recent study of nurses and care assistants by Florence found over half (53%) of healthcare professionals are calling for more sustainable long term plans for the future of the NHS. Furthermore, two in five (46%) state an increase in training grants is needed to support more people into the industry overall, helping to close the gap between staffing levels and vacancy rates.
Dr. Charles Armitage, Former NHS doctor and CEO and Founder of Florence, added:
“The NHS and healthcare system is on the brink of collapse and is not equipped to deal with the challenges it faces. This shockingly high backlog exists because we simply don’t have the front-line staff in place to deal with growing demands. Our Pathway to Care course is designed to help solve the demand problem, by introducing a career in care to a wider, younger audience, with accessible, online content.
“Current staffing levels are significantly impacting quality of care. We’re seeing a dramatic increase in wait times as elective surgeries put on hold during COVID-19 restarted, but we simply don’t have the front line staff to deal with the added pressure. This combined with a high vacancy rate is leading to unprecedented pressure on healthcare services.
“The pathway to care program starts to solve the long term problems that the health and social care industry is facing. It takes years to effectively train healthcare professionals, we need to plan effectively, and we need long term solutions to the growing vacancy rate and wait times, this programme does that. Our pathway to care will introduce the adult social care sector to anyone who is interested in working in care, and begin to fix the long term problems of low staffing levels.”
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About Florence
Florence is an innovative technology company for social care. Its free app connects nurses, care assistants and support workers with shifts and e-learning, while organisations are given a full suite of powerful workforce management tools.
Florence, which has raised a total of $50 million (£35.5 million), was launched in 2017 by NHS doctor Charles Armitage and ex-British Army officer Dan Blake as a response to the UK’s care staffing crisis. The company is on a mission to fix the healthcare staffing gap and make care outstanding for everyone. Florence works with 100,000 e-learners, 90,000 workers and over 2000 organisations. Find more about Florence at www.florence.co.uk.
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