Cubans who have managed to get an advanced education under Castro, like the many doctors staffing its medical system, will probably do fine, though many might move to the U.S. seeking better pay, filling our looming doctor shortage.

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According to a statement by the Federal Aviation Administration, there were more than 1, 025 delays in the system on Tuesday attributable to staffing reductions from the furlough.

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Franchisees say the company is doing several things to improve service, from boosting staffing at peak hours to rolling out a new system for taking orders.

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Royal College of Nursing general secretary Peter Carter agreed staffing was an issue and said he was disappointed there would not be a registration system for healthcare assistants.

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It has calculated that the policy change would result in about 27, 000 additional registrations, which could potentially be covered by the spare capacity in the system currently, although it acknowledged there would be some additional costs such as staffing.

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Other reasons for the system's survival include the collapse in the birth rate, and the generous staffing levels adopted in Soviet days.

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We will eventually see a resulting decline in the quality of what has been the best higher-education system in the world, as the people capable of designing a college curriculum and staffing it lose authority over the areas of their professional expertise.

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Consultants have told the BBC there are also concerns over staffing the emergency department, covering holiday and sick leave, and the fact that the rest of the hospital system does not follow a seven-day working pattern shift, which has a knock on effect especially at the weekends.

BBC: Northern Ireland