NHS staff 'not told when colleagues test positive for COVID-19'

NHS staff at a hospital that has stopped taking new patients amid a COVID-19 spike have lodged a series of concerns, including that they are not routinely being informed of when colleagues test positive for the virus.

The concerns were laid out in a letter from union representatives to management at Weston general hospital in Somerset, which is now testing all staff while carrying out a deep clean.

Another concern raised by Unison was that priority for testing was not being given to BAME staff. 

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS foundation trust said on Wednesday that as many as 40% of staff from a cohort tested after contact with infected patients were found to be positive.

The trust’s chief executive, Robert Woolley, told the BBC the figure was from a sample testing last week and authorities were now attempting to understand the scale of the infection. More than 60 patients were found to be infected last weekend.

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Source: The Guardian, 28 May 2020