NHS nurse: 'I used to go into work happy – not anymore'

4 January 2022, 19:35 | Updated: 4 January 2022, 20:17

Eddie Mair hears from caller who works in A&E about 'totally unsustainable' situation

By Seán Hickey

This A&E nurse moved LBC listeners with her first-hand account of the chaos in UK hospitals as Omicron cases skyrocket.

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Karen phoned in from Sheffield to share her experience on the front line with Eddie Mair, as a number of hospitals nationwide declare crisis situations.

"Every day I go into work you start your shift with a fear of dread and doom" she began.

Read more: Ben Kentish grills PM over pressure on NHS amid Omicron spread

She revealed that 12 hour waits at A&E are "not unusual now", adding that "government targets have gone out the window."

Read more: No fresh Covid curbs as PM unveils daily tests for 100,000 critical workers

"I come home I cry. This morning I didn’t want to go, I cried before I went, but I went. We are desperately short of staff.

"We were already depleted and now because of Omicron…we've been down, instead of ten qualified nurses on shift – two!"

Read more: Sajid Javid: Govt not looking at cutting self-isolation period to five days

Reacting to the Health Secretary Sajid Javid's insistence that there won't be any further restrictions, the caller said he "needs to come to work with me for a shift" to see the issues firsthand.

"I’ve gone through shifts where I haven’t even had a wee all day".

Read more: Vaccines Minister 'disappointed' when healthcare staff refuse Covid jab

"I’ve been in emergency nursing for 30 years and I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s totally unsustainable", the caller said.

"I used to go into work happy – not anymore."

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