The Future of Healthcare: Why All Work Will Be Flexible Work

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The health workforce is evolving to meet both the demands of the system and the needs of its people. Here Nicola McQueen, Chief Executive of NHS Professionals, writes how flexibility will be key to its success.

I recently had the privilege of meeting with senior people and leaders from across the NHS, including Government Departments, Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), and Trusts all in one room.

Although I meet with external colleagues and peers most weeks, we rarely get to sit down together with the chance to discuss key issues facing our sector.

Our conversation centred on the evolving workforce and the need for increased flexibility in work design and career pathways within healthcare.

We collectively reached a powerful conclusion: in the future, all work will be flexible work. 

As a champion of workforce flexibility, this was music to my ears.

Changing Patient Expectations 

The way we access and consume healthcare is shifting. People want care delivered differently—not through a rigid, one-size-fits-all model but through adaptable solutions that provide the right care in the right situation.

I’ve personally experienced both intensive face-to-face care in a hospital and quick reassurance through a digital app consultation. Both were necessary in their respective circumstances. 

Research supports this sentiment - patients desire easy access, reduced wait times, greater involvement, and choice in care options, all facilitated through advanced technology and seamless healthcare systems.

Driving Systemic Change

The UK Government has prioritised three major shifts in healthcare:

• from hospital to community care;
• from analogue to digital solutions; and,
• from treatment-based care to preventive strategies.

These shifts align with the workforce transformation we must undertake. 

Mark Britnell’s book, Human: Solving the Global Workforce Crisis in Healthcare, highlights the need for personalised models and a fundamental shift in patient-staff relationships. This transformation includes:

• creating new roles, such as health coaches, to empower patients;
• embedding soft skills into clinical roles, including communication, empathy, collaboration, negotiation, and shared decision-making; and,
• rethinking training and workforce models from the ground up.

What Gen Z Wants

The expectations of the workforce are changing, particularly with the rise of Gen Z. 

While discussions about AI and automation continue, the healthcare sector remains confident that technology will augment, not replace, human interaction in patient care. 

This means, however, that the workforce must evolve. This will mean future healthcare workers will need to be digitally savvy, comfortable with analytics, and adaptable to new tools.

Also, worth noting that Gen Z excels in technology use they may require more support in interpersonal and communication skills, with a report from the British Council finding that 70% of businesses find Gen Z lack essential soft skills.” Gen Z in the workplace: Bridging the soft skills gap to drive success.

Moreover, Gen Z has clear expectations from employers:

• financial stability remains important, but they also seek purpose-driven work;
• they prioritise diversity, inclusion, and well-being.
• They expect flexible work patterns, career fluidity, and entrepreneurial opportunities;
• they value continuous learning and mentorship; and, 
• they demand fair reward systems aligned with perceived value.

Multi-Generational Workforce

We must also recognise that the healthcare workforce comprises multiple generations. Younger workers are entering the workforce as digital natives. 

I was reminded of that when my eldest daughter explained her recent digital literacy assessment. This involved testing her ability to undertake tasks such as building tables and charts in Excel and sharing data and information between Microsoft programs.

Skills I certainly didn’t learn at school. 

But we must not make assumptions about older workers. 

My 96-year-old grandfather recently demonstrated this by sharing family photos on Instagram while also needing help with his hearing aid battery.

Upskilling the existing workforce in digital literacy and adaptability is just as important as integrating new generations seamlessly.

Reframing Flexibility

A common misconception is that flexible workers are distinct from the substantive workforce—they are not. 

Our research shows that NHS staff banks provide a fluid career pathway, allowing professionals to shift between different roles at various career stages:

• Young professionals use flexible work to gain experience;
• Mid-career professionals seek stability and career growth; and,
• pre/post-retirement professionals look for portfolio careers or mentorship opportunities.

Flexible is a choice

Each year, over 200,000 individuals work within the NHS without a substantive contract. 

Many actively choose this path - not for financial gain or due to lack of substantive roles but for control and flexibility. 

Their motivations include:

• focus on patient care without administrative responsibilities;
• opportunities to contribute to transformation and change; and,
• variety and autonomy in their professional lives.

These professionals consider themselves a core part of the NHS, and research shows that better integration of flexible workers improves patient outcomes and workforce productivity. 

We must create the right conditions to maximise their value.

Breaking Down Barriers

To deliver seamless patient care, we must enable staff movement across system divides. This will:

• alleviate workforce shortages in critical areas; 
• allow professionals to gain cross-system expertise; and,
• improve patient throughput and hospital efficiency.

A KPMG case study on integrated care systems in New York State found that developing cross-system skills was essential for improving patient pathways. 

Healthcare’s flexible workforce is ideally positioned to take on this challenge. We must also value the way flexible work broadens knowledge and experience. 

It is something I have seen in other sectors , such as I.T., utilities and transport but often missing in healthcare.

Training and Development

A key lesson from the pandemic is the power of training-to-task. We must:

• train care navigators, mentors, and community healthcare support staff; 
• use the existing flexible workforce as a talent pipeline; and,
• prevent loss of trained workers by offering development opportunities.

We recently surveyed NHS bank-only workers about their interest in community-based roles, and the response was overwhelmingly positive. 

If we fail to leverage this talent pool, we risk losing them to other industries.

A Key Pillar in the NHS 10-Year Plan

As the NHS develops its 10-year workforce strategy, we are committed to ensuring flexible work is a key component. 

Our National Bank recruitment and deployment initiatives are already supporting this transformation by:

• partnering with ICBs to deploy talent across healthcare systems;
• aligning flexible work with the NHS’s ‘one workforce’ vision; and,
• building a cross-system talent pool tailored to the needs of 42 Integrated Care Systems.

Flexibility is the future 

The NHS cannot thrive without a strong and integrated flexible workforce. 

We must move beyond outdated perceptions and actively manage this workforce to maximise its efficiency, skills, and potential.

By embracing a multi-skilled, cross-system talent pool, we can create a workforce that meets the demands of a rapidly changing healthcare landscape - ensuring better patient outcomes, improved workforce satisfaction, and enhanced system-wide productivity.

The future of NHS work is not just flexible—it is designed for flexibility.

Shaping the Future Together

Senior healthcare leaders and policymakers have a unique opportunity to drive meaningful change. We must:

• recruit for adaptability and flexibility;
• champion workforce flexibility as a key enabler of healthcare transformation;
• develop policies that integrate flexible workers seamlessly into the NHS workforce model; and,
• invest in cross-system training and workforce mobility to build a more adaptable, skilled workforce.
• get ready for all new roles and skills that will come into our workforce;
• ensure technology adoption supports, rather than replaces, human interactions in care delivery; and,
• collaborate with workforce specialists to build a sustainable, future-proof talent strategy.

I’m personally really excited for the future of our health economy and particularly excited to be recruiting our first drone pilots, bio hackers and our future nanobot surgeons.