Swapping NHS wards for cosmetic clinics

Nursing is the largest profession in the NHS but is currently suffering from staff shortages. NHS data revealed there are over 47,000 vacancies within the nursing staff group which accounts for nurses and midwives. With 40,000 nurses leaving over the past year it poses a concerning future for our healthcare service.

The Royal College of Midwives, Chief Executive, Gill Walton said there are 2000 midwife vacancies throughout England. The RCM ‘members’ experience survey’ revealed that over half of the respondents were considering leaving over the next year. Eight out of ten were concerned about staffing levels and two-thirds were no longer satisfied with the quality of care they were delivering.

A survey of 9,577 respondents from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) found:

• 74% of respondents were required to work overtime at least once a week.
• 68% felt under too much pressure at work.
• Nearly 67% reported that they were unwell due to stress and 38% stated this was due to mental health issues.

Many are turning their backs on the NHS to prioritise themselves and try a career in the booming aesthetics trade. Policybee Insurance estimates that due to the popularity of filler and Botox in the UK the industry is now worth over £3 billion.

There are 950 aesthetic clinics with nearly half of those being run by healthcare professionals. The evidence stands that this pathway is ever-growing for clinically trained individuals all over the country. However, why aesthetics?

A newly qualified full-time nurse can expect just over £27,000. It is known that the aesthetics industry is very remunerative with aesthetic practitioners making up to £150,000. Although it is not just about the money, the cosmetic world of fillers and Botox is rich in other ways too.

Statistics from UK cosmetic insurance firm, Hamilton Fraser found that 76% of the 450 practitioner respondents in their survey said working in aesthetics met their expectations. The style of work provides flexible hours with 74% working part-time and allows for healthcare professionals who may have felt restricted by their skill sets to utilise them in a new way.

The appeal is felt far and wide in the UK with students even considering it straight out of university rather than entering the NHS.

Elena Ross, 19 studies Adult Nursing in London. Elena was optimistic ahead of her nursing degree she said: “I always wanted to do a job that had a purpose and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”

As she began to work on placement these expectations started to falter. “It was my first experience of being in that environment, it was a mess and it truly showed what felt like the worst part of the NHS, it was awful,” she said.

After being placed in a multitude of wards, Elena began to see a trend among different hospitals. “Most of it has to do with the patient’s care, they can’t be giving adequate care to make patients better under these circumstances,” she said.

Elena claimed wards rely heavily on student nurses. “I felt like I had kind of been thrown into the deep end, as they didn’t explain anything, it felt like a case of just having to get through it,” she said. These declining levels of care create a harrowing image of the NHS, student nurses are being left to their own devices and enduring things they didn’t sign up for.

It isn’t a surprise Elena feels the NHS route is not for her she said: “When I’m on the wards, it’s shown me it’s not really what I want to do.” Elena dreams of a career in cosmetic dermatology but understands completing her degree has to come first. “I’ve had moments where I have wanted to drop out, but having this in the back of my mind stopped me,” she said.

Through popularity on social media, aesthetics has inspired Elena to stick by her degree so she can become an aesthetic practitioner, “I follow so many people on Instagram who went into having their own aesthetic clinics and it just looks like the best life,” she said.

Many practitioners online have exposed the aesthetic industry to the masses, amounting followers by highlighting how the financial benefits have aided their glamorous lifestyles.

Yet, Elena felt there was more to it than just the financial aspects she said: “It’s still helping people in a way, it’s not as if I’m saving people who are dying but I’m still helping people feel the best version of themselves.”

It is a bleak picture from someone so early into their career, but it is also apparent that those who have left the NHS don’t just come straight from their studies.

Former Deputy Head of Midwifery, Marie Foreman, 55 worked as a midwife in the NHS for over 25 years she said: “Looking back over my career I did really enjoy my clinical work, working with women, it also had a really strong sense of teamwork.”

“It just came to a point where I thought I’ve got to stop thinking about everyone else and think about me.”

Marie FOREMAN, FORMER DEPUTY HEAD OF MIDWIFERY

Marie took on the Deputy Head of Midwifery role just before the pandemic hit, “Had I known what was going to happen, I would never have agreed,” she said.

Feeling the pressure in a managerial role throughout Covid-19 drew Marie further away from the career she once loved. “I always felt when morale was getting especially bad, perhaps it was becoming harder to keep it up when I was just burned out,” she said.

During Covid, the government rhetoric was changing every day combined with structural changes that were dividing departments it caused Marie’s moral compass to weaken, she said: “I suppose after a while as a manager you have to tow the party line it doesn’t matter if you believe in it or not, you have to tell your staff that you believe in it, however, I just really couldn’t do it anymore, it felt morally wrong.”

Marie said: “I supposed Covid made everyone re-evaluate a little bit and I just reflected on what was important in life and thought, is this what you want to do for the rest of your career, is this a system you want to be part of?”

Working in the NHS during this time was challenging Marie to a point she had not experienced before, “I just couldn’t stop thinking about work, worrying about work, my anxiety just got to the point where I thought this was either gonna make me ill or I needed to take some time out,” she said.

Marie knew she had to leave, other changes commenced as the Head of Midwifery walked from the trust which also contributed to Marie’s departure, although it wasn’t easy, she said:

“I was challenged with the decision for months, I was riddled with it because with the Head of Midwifery going as well it felt like we were both deserting a sinking ship.”

Although it was a difficult decision for Marie, she did decide to walk away from the NHS, she said: “It just came to a point where I thought I’ve got to stop thinking about everyone else and think about me.”

Marie was encouraged to go into the cosmetic industry by a colleague in the NHS. She practices at a clinic providing Botox, filler, and injectable moisturisers to a vast range of clients aged between 40-80. For Marie, aesthetics are not about the financial advantages but patients’ results satisfy her in a way she never expected, “I’ve seen women spend a few hundred pounds on themselves and it makes them feel a million dollars,” she said.

The aesthetic industry fulfils Marie as it’s a chance for her to use her clinical skills, build relationships with clients and make her feel like she’s ‘doing something good again’.

According to the RCN, 100,000 nurses are set to strike towards the end of December. The strikes were launched by the RCN in response to the government’s failure to offer nurses and midwives an above-inflation pay rise. For many, it is about standards of pay but as Marie mentions, “I think people will continue to leave the NHS because it’s not just about pay it’s about the conditions we now work in.”

The NHS has been put under immense pressure since the pandemic with extreme waiting times for patients due to the severe lack of staffing. The once universal health service needs to change in order to work again.