HEALTH minister Frank Dobson has promised a more flexible NHS to attract high-quality nursing staff.

The Royal College of Nurses (RCN) criticised the NHS for being inflexible - claiming that nurses have to take sick, annual or unpaid leave in times of family crisis.

The RCN launched a campaign called Making Time to promote employee-friendly policies that allow nurses to combine home and work lives.

The campaign won the backing of Prime Minister Tony Blair and Mr Dobson believes the NHS is reaping the rewards of changing to suit its staff.

He revealed that 2,030 nurses and midwives are back in NHS employment and 2,327 are in refresher training, after an eight-month recruitment campaign.

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