Overview
- A Society of Radiographers poll and other union surveys say racist incidents against non-white and internationally trained NHS staff have increased noticeably over the past 18 months.
- The NHS Staff Survey published in March found 9.26% of staff reported discrimination from patients in the past year, the highest five-year figure.
- The Royal College of Nursing’s FOI-based review recorded more than 21,000 racist incidents reported by nursing staff over four years, a rise of about 78% since the start of that period.
- NHS England has condemned the abuse and set new national staff standards that require trusts to support affected staff, investigate incidents and enable actions including refusing non-emergency care to abusive patients.
- Unions and professional bodies are calling for standardised national recording and clearer trust accountability because inconsistent reporting hides the full scale of the problem and risks staff wellbeing and retention.