You asked
I would like to request the posted number of vacancies in the NHS for doctors of varying grades and specialties.
I would also like to know the total number of doctors' vacancies as a whole nationally.
We said
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) does not have available the information you require.
In order to produce estimates on the number of vacancies in the UK the ONS conducts the Vacancy Survey. This is a statutory, monthly survey of businesses. The survey asks a single question: how many job vacancies did a business have in total (on a specified date) for which they were actively seeking recruits from outside their organisation. The total sample size of the vacancy survey is 6,000 organisations for the whole of the UK.
The Vacancy Survey is not designed to produce vacancies by occupation type but rather to produce robust estimates of vacancies at Section level of the Standard Industrial Classification (2007). The most relevant Section relating to your request is 'Section Q - Human Health and Social Work Activities'. However, this classification includes all vacancies relating to human health activities, residential care activities and social work activities without accommodation.
It is possible that NHS Digital (formerly the Health and Social Care Information Centre) may be able to help you obtain information on vacancies within the NHS.