The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has reported a 'catastrophic rise' in racial abuse against nurses, with calls to its helpline from ethnic minority staff seeking advice after facing discrimination increasing by 70% in recent years.
Among the cases reported, a nurse recounted that a patient's family stated they did not want black individuals caring for their daughter. Another nurse was told by a senior colleague that they disliked Indian people. One nurse observing Ramadan heard comments about Muslim staff and objections to their prayers.
Speaking at the RCN's annual congress in Liverpool, General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger described the situation as a 'disgrace'. The RCN submitted a Freedom of Information request to NHS trusts and health boards across the UK, receiving 106 responses that provided data on nurses. These responses revealed 21,725 reported incidents involving racial abuse or discrimination between 2022 and 2025.
However, the RCN suggests the true figure would be upward of 40,000 if all NHS trusts had effective reporting systems in place. This equates to one incident every 51 minutes. Professor Ranger called for a standardised system for reporting racism, including more thorough data collection.
She stated: 'These findings show a catastrophic rise in the racist abuse faced by nursing staff. It is a disgrace, and perhaps just as bad is the fact that many NHS trusts and health boards cannot even tell us how many staff have been on the receiving end. It amounts to a policy of 'don't know, don't care'.'
'Nursing staff are the lifeblood of our NHS and social care, made up of every nationality and ethnicity, coming together to care for patients every day. They are a shining example of a successful, multicultural modern United Kingdom, and they deserve better than for this disgusting racism and abuse to flourish and become so normalised.'
'Our colleagues are being let down by health leaders who are failing in their duty to keep them safe at work and by politicians who cynically play communities off each other for political gain. As employers, NHS trusts and health boards must be uncompromising in challenging this vile abuse from patients and, where it does occur, ensure staff are supported to report it.'
'Across all the NHS, we need a standardised method of recording incidents of racial abuse which includes data on the staff group, work areas and ethnicity of the staff member making the report. We cannot hope to stamp out racism in our health service while health leaders are in the dark over the scale of the crisis.'
In her keynote speech at congress, Professor Ranger noted a 'palpable rise in anti-immigrant rhetoric that is absolutely abhorrent'. She warned that if nurses do not feel welcome, the UK should not be surprised if they leave, which would worsen nursing workforce issues and create a recruitment and retention crisis among internationally educated staff.
