HSC still in ‘recovery mode’ after pandemic

This year’s States accounts show that HSC’s overspend last year amounted to £3.7m. which the accounts sums up as being ‘driven by high demand levels across multiple services and a considerable reliance on agency staff to delivery these services’.

HSC had two years of suppressed ‘business as usual’ activity as it responded to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, it said, and it is still playing catch-up with waiting lists, but is also trying to respond to the demand across the 110 services it provides.

‘This situation is not unique to the Bailiwick and health and care providers face the same challenges within the British Isles,’ it said.

Continued staffing issues affecting health services all over the world are blamed and this has led to HSC relying on agency workers.

‘HSC does not want to rely on agency or temporary workers but equally the accommodation challenges across the islands also impacts on an individual or family choosing to relocate to the islands, as it does to our wider community.’

The overspend was mainly due to agency costs which it could not avoid last year and which continues to be a ‘significant challenge’ this year, but were said to essential to continue to provide services.

‘We would prefer to underspend year-on-year but there are multiple factors at play which make this a difficult short to medium term expenditure risk,' it said.