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MPs have said the savings will test the NHS and social services to the limit
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Job cuts in the NHS in England could endanger patients' lives, the head of the Royal College of Nursing has said.
The union fears 27,000 posts will be cut, and many more could be at risk, as part of required efficiency savings of up to £20bn over four years.
Writing in the Observer, Dr Peter Carter said nurses would have "less time to give each patient and there is no doubt care will suffer".
The Department of Health said reform was "not an option; it is a necessity".
Mr Carter said the NHS was "now seeing some of the most widespread cuts in its history".
"The worry is that we have seen time and again what happens when staffing levels are slashed without thinking of the impact on patient care," the RCN general secretary said.
There was "indisputable evidence" linking patient mortality rates to staffing levels, Mr Carter said, citing a study that identified a 26% increase in survival rates in hospitals with the highest patient-to-nurse ratios.
"More than half of nurses have already told us they are too busy to provide the standard of care they would like.
"When they are seeing further cutbacks, less shift cover, more patients to attend to, they will have less time to give each patient and there is no doubt care will suffer."
He added: "The NHS is not yet returning to the days of interminable waits for treatment and trolleys in corridors, but we are worried that on the trajectory already started, it may only be a matter of time until it does."
A Department of Health spokesman said: "If we are to make patient outcomes truly world-class and respond to rising demand, we must reform the NHS so that it can focus its resources on patients and quality.
"The NHS White Paper will help to protect patients and give commissioners the powers to take action if unacceptable mistakes happen. Unsafe care is not to be tolerated."
The reforms laid out in the White Paper do not affect the health services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which are devolved to their national administrations.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
MPs have said the savings will test the NHS and social services to the limit Related stories
Job cuts in the NHS in England could endanger patients' lives, the head of the Royal College of Nursing has said.
The union fears 27,000 posts will be cut, and many more could be at risk, as part of required efficiency savings of up to £20bn over four years.
Writing in the Observer, Dr Peter Carter said nurses would have "less time to give each patient and there is no doubt care will suffer".
The Department of Health said reform was "not an option; it is a necessity".
Mr Carter said the NHS was "now seeing some of the most widespread cuts in its history".
"The worry is that we have seen time and again what happens when staffing levels are slashed without thinking of the impact on patient care," the RCN general secretary said.
There was "indisputable evidence" linking patient mortality rates to staffing levels, Mr Carter said, citing a study that identified a 26% increase in survival rates in hospitals with the highest patient-to-nurse ratios.
“Unsafe care is not to be tolerated”
Department of Health "When they are seeing further cutbacks, less shift cover, more patients to attend to, they will have less time to give each patient and there is no doubt care will suffer."
He added: "The NHS is not yet returning to the days of interminable waits for treatment and trolleys in corridors, but we are worried that on the trajectory already started, it may only be a matter of time until it does."
A Department of Health spokesman said: "If we are to make patient outcomes truly world-class and respond to rising demand, we must reform the NHS so that it can focus its resources on patients and quality.
"The NHS White Paper will help to protect patients and give commissioners the powers to take action if unacceptable mistakes happen. Unsafe care is not to be tolerated."
The reforms laid out in the White Paper do not affect the health services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which are devolved to their national administrations.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
