Only 3% of NHS histopathology departments have enough staff to meet clinical demand, according to a workforce census published recently by The Royal College of Pathologists (RCPath). Meeting pathology demand focused on the histopathology workforce, and highlights the intense pressures that histopathologists face from increased workloads, such as new NHS screening programmes and the introduction of more complex work as personalised medicine develops.
Now, biomedical scientists are undertaking roles traditionally carried out by medical staff and are contributing to the diagnosis of cancer in some laboratories across the UK. In facilitating this, the IBMS has worked closely with the RCPath to develop and implement roles for scientists within histopathology and is promoting their increased uptake in order to alleviate workforce issues.