A botched Brexit will leave nurses unable to do their jobs safely – that's why they want a final say

Our members are the ones who have to calm distraught parents begging for help in A&E, knowing there is nobody free to treat their child. A bad Brexit will make this situation even worse

One in three nurses is due to retire in the next five years, leaving a huge shortfall that will only get worse if there is a bad deal with the EU after Brexit (Rex)

For some, the effects of Brexit remain an abstract concept, merely the frantic warnings of “project fear”. But for our members and their patients at the sharp end of health and social care, its effects are already being felt.

Safe and effective patient care relies on having enough nurses in any given health care setting, with the right skills to do the best job they can. Study after study has found a direct correlation between mortality rates and the number of nurses on duty. It is no exaggeration to say that patients die without enough nurses to treat them. Yet here we are, with 40,000 nursing vacancies in England alone, and our members telling us they cannot provide the care that patients need.

European nurses are a vital part of our health care system. We rely on them to fill the gaps left by years of poor workforce planning, pay restraint and falling student numbers. With one in three UK nurses due for retirement in the next five years, we need them now more than ever. They are highly valued and expert colleagues adding to the incredible richness of our profession – and reaffirm its global reach.

Free movement allows European nurses to live and work in the UK, while shared standards of education, training and regulation mean they can transfer their skills safely, easily and swiftly to support our struggling health care system. This is not just about hospital care; community and social care also will also feel the impact. A botched Brexit could mean we lose access to these nurses, leaving more gaps in rotas and more care undone.

Our members – working across the UK in every imaginable setting – know these risks all too well. They are the ones who work past the end of their 12 hour shifts to make sure patients are safe. They are the ones who have to explain to the family of a terminally ill patient why no-one was available to hold their hand while they died. They are the ones who try to calm distraught parents begging for help in A&E, knowing there is nobody free to treat their child.

These issues are happening right now, and a bad Brexit will make them even worse. This is not scaremongering, this is reality.

At our national congress, our members voted overwhelmingly in support of a referendum on the final deal. But it is not up to us to tell them – or anyone else – how to vote. What we can do is make sure people are fully informed, and know the effect their choices will have.

Today we have written to the Westminster party leaders calling on them to back a public vote on the terms of the final deal to leave the EU, and we’re endorsing The Independent’s Final Say campaign to help make sure that happens.

We want to see EU citizens who have built their lives here – many of whom make an indispensable contribution to our health care system – given indefinite leave to remain, irrespective of any deal struck across the channel. We want the UK to have continued access to European nurses, so patients can get the care they deserve.

We want to see continued alignment of regulatory standards that protect the UK’s supply of medicines and medical equipment. And we want continued cooperation on research and clinical trials, so that UK patients can continue to enjoy new drugs and treatments.

A bad Brexit poses a direct and immediate threat to public health, and that is reason our members voted for us to lobby the government to allow a public vote on the terms of the deal. Once we know what’s on offer, the balance of risks and rewards, only then can we decide on our future relationship with Europe. And it’s the people who need to choose.

Maria Trewern is chair of council for the Royal College of Nursing