Calls to support NHS staff in Herefordshire and Worcestershire as report warns pandemic is taking 'huge toll' on mental health
The NHS Confederation says the health service risks losing thousands of doctors and nurses
There are calls for NHS staff in Herefordshire and Worcestershire to have "decompression time" after the pandemic.
The NHS Confederation, which represents NHS organisations, said the health service risks losing thousands of nurses and doctors unless they are given the time and space to recover from the pandemic.
There are "significant'' numbers of staff with depression and anxiety and a small minority will have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), it warned.
A new report from the organisation, says the pandemic has taken an "enormous'' toll on NHS staff.
Dr David Nicholls, a Neurologist from Bromsgrove, said:
"It's been extremely challenging. One can't really put into words how hard it's been for many colleagues.
"I'm particularly concerned for my nursing colleagues who've been put in an environment which was like nothing they've ever trained for.
"I'm not sure I've necessarily had the volume but I've certainly had some pretty bad stuff to see. It's not pleasant seeing otherwise fit 40-year-olds die, basically, and there's not much you can do about it".
Workers have been "sprinting a marathon'' for the last year of the crisis, the report adds.
This has led to serious concerns about the health and wellbeing of staff.
The report described the last year as "gruelling'' and says staff - the "most valuable resource'' in the health service - should be at the heart of getting services back to usual.
The report says that some staff will need "decompression time'' - which should be handled by local leaders.
"For health and care staff, the last 12 months have been likened to sprinting a marathon, with concerns raised over the impact on health and wellbeing,'' the report says.
"Anxiety, fear and exhaustion among staff are reported to have increased over the pandemic, affecting a range of staff groups and taking a toll in particular on staff from a black and minority ethnic background.''
The organisation said that while staff cannot have a period of decompression in the same way that armed forces personnel do after military deployments, local health leaders need to be creative to ensure that staff can rest and recuperate.
It said that anxiety, fear and exhaustion among staff have increased during the pandemic, adding: "Building in time for staff to rest and recuperate is essential.''
Dr David Nicholls added:
"I think it's a great idea but how it's done is the question.
"I'm not surprised it's needed as staff have had to deal with really challenging situations.
"For example the difficult conversations you might have in a coffee room in the ICU, explaining to someone that they're not going to survive, and holding their hand, you can't do.
"So having to do that essentially via WhatsApp or FaceTime is horrible".
As well as working flat out to treat Covid-19 patients, staff may have also suffered "moral injury'' whereby they are concerned about the impact that the pandemic has had on their patients, either through the backlog of care or the fact that some people have put off seeking help.
The report also says that recognising the contributions and sacrifices made by staff over the last year is "crucial for workforce retention''.
Danny Mortimer, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:
"Colleagues in the NHS have clearly been through something remarkable over this last year, whether that's the colleagues who were dealing directly with Covid patients or colleagues who know they're not being able to do everything that they would normally do or want to do for their patients - the concept of moral injury.
"We've all had to make compromises in our lives, but NHS staff have had to make compromises in terms of how they would run services and deliver them - they're very aware of patients that aren't coming forward for treatment or they're not able to see as quickly as they would like, and all of that adds to the kind of stress and strain.''
NHS Confederation warned that the Government needs to act now to avert a staffing crisis in the health service.
Without action the Government will fail on the key manifesto pledge to recruit 50,000 nurses, it warned.
And it will take the health service even longer to address the impact of the pandemic on waiting times and other services.