HOSPITAL staff in East Lancashire took more than 110,000 days off sick in just two years, it has been revealed.

Employees ranging from healthcare assistants and receptionists to doctors and nurses each took an average of 11 and 10 sick days for the two years respectively.

Although the absence rate is generally being reduced, it still means the equivalent of around 150 out of the hospitals’ workforce of more than 5,000 are off ill every day.

And hospital bosses are left having to find cover, call on ‘bank’ staff or draft in agency workers.

Nationally, the average number of days off sick in the private sector is 5.8 per worker, and 8.3 in the public sector.

The statistics, revealed to the Lancashire Telegraph under the Freedom of Information Act, show that staff at Royal Blackburn, Burnley General, Accrington Victoria and Pendle Community hospitals took a total of 112,589 sick days in 2009 and 2010.

It meant the trust missed its target of nine days per employee.

Gordon Birtwistle, MP for Burnley, said: “I think it is surprisingly high.

“It is up to the trust to sort it out.

“The workload should be adequate for what people can manage. When people are put under stress they go off sick.

“It costs double to employ agency staff than it does local nurses.”

Tim Ellis, regional officer for UNISON North West, said most of the sick days related to staff who were on long-term leave.

He said: “We are glad that through hard work by all parties sickness absence has been reduced over the years.

“There is no evidence that there is a wilful level of sickness absence.”

Ian Brandwood, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust’s human resources chief, said the main reasons for staff calling in sick were musculoskeletal injuries and stress.

But a series of innovative initiatives had helped reduce the number of staff off work at any one time on the whole.

He said: “Only in exceptional circumstances and where all other options have been exhausted will authority be given to use agency staff to ensure that service delivery is not adversely affected.”

Click on the link below for the full statistics.