Record-breaking sickness figures among NHS staff
Absence rate almost doubled at height of pandemic
AS many as one in 11 working days were being lost to sickness at our hospitals at the height of the pandemic.
While record levels of sickness at Greater Manchester hospitals were likely driven by staff catching Covid-19, figures also suggest a big jump in anxiety and stress, leading to calls for more mental health support for staff.
The sickness absence rate was 9.5 per cent at Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust in April - the highest level locally, and the highest level recorded in the trust since records began in April 2009.
Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust manages Rochdale Infirmary.
April saw the peak of both infections - with 26,933 people testing positive in England in the week ending April 12 and hospital deaths - 900 on April 8.
National figures show huge rises in the number of days being lost to colds, coughs and flu, chest and respiratory problems, and infectious diseases in April - all likely to reflect staff going down with coronavirus symptoms.
But the number of days being lost to anxiety, stress and depression also jumped by a third compared to a year before.
At Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, 26,725 days were lost to all sickness, almost double the 13,713 days lost in April 2019, according to the figures from NHS England.
The trust recorded 296 deaths due to coronavirus in April.
The overall sickness absence rate for the NHS in England was 6.2 per cent in April, the highest rate on record.
British Medical Association deputy chairman Dr David Wrigley said: “The BMA has been concerned about the long-term impact of Covid-19 on both the physical and mental health of doctors and other healthcare workers. But even before the pandemic, NHS workers were struggling to cope with acute staff shortages, long hours and real-terms decreases in income.
“The pandemic has, inevitably, exacerbated the effects of these problems, not least the risks to doctors’ personal safety and the increase in working hours that many of them have undertaken. Sadly, many doctors have also died.
“Protecting the health medical staff working at a time of increased stress and anxiety to keep the nation safe, must now be a priority for the government and NHS leadership.”
The overall figures show 2.3 million working days were lost due to sickness in April 2020, 60pc higher than the 1.4 million lost in April 2019.
The biggest increase in lost days was for infectious diseases, up 4,001pc year on year to 317,208 days, with days lost to chest and respiratory problems up sevenfold to 334,794 days, and coughs, flu and colds more than tripling to 324,468.
Anxiety, stress, depression and other mental health issues led to 472,426 lost days in April, a third higher than a year before.
Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust have been contacted for a comment.
Miriam Deakin, the director of policy and strategy at NHS Providers, which represents all NHS hospital, mental health, community and ambulance services, said: “NHS frontline staff, whether they work in hospitals, ambulance, mental health, or community services, have all played an incredibly valuable role during this crisis.
“Trusts are doing all they can to support staff, including setting up a range of services such as relaxation and wellbeing hubs and safe spaces for staff to spend some time reflecting and accessing emotional support if they need it.
“Additional support for staff will be a long term requirement, as evidence suggests that staff are more likely to present much later, around two and a half to seven years after experiencing trauma.
“We will need to continue to track the mental health and wellbeing of the workforce to get a good understanding of the impact Covid-19 has had for years to come.”