NHS woos informatics specialists

There is a high vacancy rates among the UK's National Health Service informatics staff—a group that includes software designers, helpdesk technicians, health records managers, data analysts, and directors of IT. A survey last year by the Association for Informatics Professionals in Health and Social Care found vacancy rates across the NHS ranging from 16% for clinical informatics staff to 6% at senior level. The health informatics review in England last summer also identified shortages of key professionals, including people who specialize in data security.