Nurses warn of risky staff levels

Nursing staff at Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust claim patients' lives are being put at risk because of staff shortages.

Nearly 40 staff on Derriford hospital's Crownhill ward have written to union representatives and trust managers, saying that understaffing has led to pressure and put patients' lives at risk. The letter, leaked to a local newspaper, calls on managers to improve conditions.

Paula Vasco-Knight, the trust's chief nurse and deputy chief executive, said she was 'disappointed' that the nurses had not come to her with their concerns. As a temporary measure, the trust had decided to use agency nurses to increase staffing levels, she said.

'Patient safety and staff morale has had to come first,' she added.