New planning unit for Wales NHS

The NHS in Wales will receive a single body to help ensure the health service can effectively plan, develop and commission education and training places, according to the Health Professional Education Investment review.

NHS Wales has more than 72,000 full-time employees, as well as 4,000 independent practitioners, making it the country's largest employer. What's more, the number of frontline staff working in the Welsh NHS has increased by ten per cent over the past decade.

The review - commissioned by the Welsh Government - also said that a new planning unit would set the health service up to better respond to the challenges it faces today and in the future, the South Wales Argus reports.

It would also place a greater focus on providing young people with more career opportunities within each sector of the NHS.

The review went on to suggest that if the NHS strengthened its relationships with professional regulators it would bring a new and refreshed vision to the body over the coming years.

It recommended that a strong focus should be placed on existing staff by providing them with the opportunity to expand their skills through flexible education and training programmes. This would involve utilising technology through means such as e-learning tools.

Each year, more than £350 million is invested into education and training programmes that help over 15,000 students across Wales through their health-related studies. This includes helping students at undergraduate and postgraduate level and those in continuing professional development.

Virtual College is a leading provider of online training to the healthcare sector. Since 2006, we have provided training to every NHS trust and our National Patient Safety Training Suite has had over 260,000 registered learners. To find out more, please visit: http://www.healthcareea.co.uk/