Patients faced a 12-hour wait for emergency scans at a busy hospital due to staff shortages.
Staff working in the radiology department at Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin are being asked to work overtime to cover gaps in shifts.
But a health worker claims staff are experiencing more frequent, and longer periods of sick leave due to performing additional on-call shifts, staff shortages, and an increase in the number of emergency scans.
And the employee claims the hospital is operating a “dangerous” level of service because there’s not enough staff.
The Dr Gray’s Hospital employee said the radiology department has struggled to provide a full emergency service for several years due to staff being off sick and vacancies not being filled.
And the worker said there was one occasion where there was no staff on shift to carry out emergency CT scans.
The employee added that senior managers in Elgin and Aberdeen have known for years about the situation and are aware that radiographers have refused to continue their long-held practice of taking on additional, non-rostered shifts.
How is NHS Grampian covering shifts?
To cater for the gaps in the radiology service, locum radiographers have been contracted.
But the worker said they’re in great demand throughout the country and have become more difficult to get hold of, putting pressure on the service to provide a consistent level of emergency care.
Even so, it’s claimed that there was a Saturday in May this year that emergency CT scans could not be performed due to no staff being available.
The radiology department is staffed with specially trained doctors who use medical equipment, such as CT scanners, to diagnose critical illnesses such as strokes, as well as injuries in patients.
The health worker said: “There was a 12-hour period when emergency CT scans could not be done. How can a hospital look after emergency patients if there are no scans available?”
What effect has this had on staff?
The worker added: “Over the years there’s been a huge increase in the amount of diagnostic tests being requested out of hours. The radiographers can no longer take this amount of work, especially when they work all day and then, working on their own, have to continue into the evening and throughout the night.
“It’s making people sick. When radiographers are off sick, their out-of-hours work needs to be picked up by another radiographer. This radiographer then has more work, more often, and is more likely to become ill themselves. This cycle is repeated, and some radiographers have said they can’t do this anymore.”
‘They are struggling to do the jobs they love’
The worker said that tensions were heightened further after senior management in Aberdeen decided to contact radiographers individually, asking them to take on additional shifts.
The employee decided to reach out as a direct consequence of this action and said: “They are struggling to do the jobs they love. There’s exhaustion and stress, and they feel completely powerless.
“For somebody to decide it’s OK to put further pressure on them to take on extra work is outrageous. This does not reflect NHS Grampian’s message of ‘We Care’.
The worker confirmed that some of the staff had since contacted their union rep.
‘It’s dangerous now’
“It’s dangerous now. I know several members of the department are leaving, or taking early retirement.
“I know there are others who are unhappy and may look elsewhere. I can’t see the service being capable of looking after patients if another Covid surge happens, or winter flu.”
NHS Grampian started advertising for four more radiography staff in October last year, but even though they have been advertised several times, only one of the posts has yet been filled.
‘The department needs a shift system’
The health worker said that X-ray services across the country were facing similar difficulties in recruitment and staffing.
But that radiology at Dr Gray’s, like other teams in NHS Grampian, need a shift system to provide a reliable 24/7 service.
The worker added: “NHS Grampian need to make a decision as to what kind of X-ray service they want in Dr Gray’s. Go all out to put sufficient numbers of staff in place, or continue to neglect the problem they’ve known about for years and announce that the people of Moray should expect a reduced level of service.”
What is NHS Grampian saying?
An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said: “Some areas of the service have felt extra pressure due to either unfilled vacancies, annual leave or increased demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“To maintain a safe and deliverable service for our patients, paid overtime for existing staff or the use of external locums is commonplace.
“There are occasions when staff are asked to cover gaps at short notice across health and care.
“There was an occasion when there was a limited radiography service at Dr Gray’s Hospital and business continuity arrangements were put in place to maintain safe service for the population of Moray.”
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