Home / Health / North Tees Hospital Seeks £2M to Address Critical Care Staffing Crisis
North Tees Hospital Seeks £2M to Address Critical Care Staffing Crisis
13 Nov
Summary
- North Tees critical care unit faces staffing shortages, high turnover, and rising sickness rates
- Preferred option is £2.1M spent on recruitment and training over 3 years
- Hospital's crumbling buildings have only 8 years of life left, costing millions to maintain
According to a recent NHS report, the critical care unit at the University Hospital of North Tees in Stockton is in urgent need of a £2M investment to address staffing issues and meet workforce standards. The unit has been facing one of the highest turnover rates in the region, with sickness levels rising mainly due to stress, anxiety, and depression among the staff.
The University Hospitals Tees group, which oversees the North and South Tees NHS Foundation Trusts, has been advised that the preferred option would be to spend £2.1M on recruitment and training over the next three years. While the current staff have been working hard to ensure no detriment to patient care, the hospital's chief nurse has acknowledged that the unit is not meeting intensive care standards guidelines due to a lack of the required skill mix.
In addition to the staffing challenges, the hospital's crumbling buildings, previously branded as "not fit for purpose," are also a major concern. These aging facilities are costing hundreds of millions of pounds to maintain and are estimated to have only eight years of life left. The hospital's group chief executive has stated that the estate and environment are "less than optimum" and they are seeking investment to rebuild the hospital.
