Covid UK: NHS staff absences due to virus hit 10-week high

NHS staff absences due to Covid have hit a 10-week high, as nursing leaders plead with healthcare chiefs for transparency amid plans to cut publication of the “vital” weekly data.

NHS England published its last weekly update on staff absences on Thursday and the new data shows an average of 28,500 workers were off sick each day last week for Covid-related reasons.

The last time the weekly average was higher was when it hit 30,375 in the week of 23 January 2022.

The news comes as hospitals and ambulance services across the country declare critical incidents due to “extreme pressures”.

The latest figures show 9,972 incidents of ambulances being delayed outside A&E for more than an hour, while 94 per cent of hospital beds were occupied.

In a letter shared with The Independent to NHS England chief Amanda Pritchard, Carol Popplestone, chair of the Royal College of Nursing Council, said: “The transparent and timely release of data has been a key feature of the pandemic, therefore we do not consider it appropriate for the release of the NHS SitReps to come to an end this week.

“As representatives of the NHS nursing and medical workforce, we believe it is essential that real-time information on our members’ professional experience is accessible. Transparent live data has been critical to see the level of Covid-related staff absences. Only this month, there was a sharp increase of 82 per cent – in keeping with a nationwide increase in cases.”

The letter says the information on staff absences is “vital” and warned against returning to the monthly publication of statistics.

It adds: “ We understand that NHS trusts will still be required to report on their local absences, and this data must continue to be released to the public and organisations like ours with the same level of regularity and detail. This is important to ensure transparency and accountability for workforce issues within the NHS.”

NHS England was contacted for a response on whether it will continue publishing the weekly data, but it did not respond.

NHS medical director Stephen Powis said in relation to the figures published on Thursday: “Today’s figures sum up just how busy NHS staff currently are – alongside increasing numbers of Covid and emergency patients and with 94 per cent of beds now occupied, they are also dealing with the highest number of staff off sick due to the virus for 10 weeks – an average of 28,500 staff each day.

“Our frontline staff are working closely together with social care providers to ensure patients leave hospital as soon as they are fit to do so, and hospitals have increased bed numbers and created extra capacity in line with increasing pressure.”