Thousands of patients are being put at risk of harm by a severe shortage of NHS nurses, an alarming investigation reveals.
At least a third of hospitals routinely have dangerously large gaps in their rotas, with baby and critical care units worst hit.
Studies have shown even a small shortfall of nurses can increase the risk of death, as overworked staff are less likely to notice signs of deterioration.
It also impacts on other aspects of care, with patients less likely to be given their medication, food and drink in a timely manner – and nurses too busy for a comforting chat. Safety experts last night described the data as ‘worrying’ and ‘extremely concerning’.
NHS England was forced to release the figures under Freedom of Information laws after a ten-month battle by Channel 4 News FactCheck.
The vast database, shared exclusively with the Mail, shows the gap between how many nurses hospitals expected to need – ‘planned’ staffing – and how many were actually on shift.
It covers almost 250 hospitals and gives insights into nearly every ward in England across 23 months – from January 2023 to November 2024.
The dossier reveals a third (31 per cent) of England’s acute hospitals consistently missed more than 10 per cent of planned nurses on average across their wards. A third of neonatal units (30 per cent) and a fifth (18 per cent) of critical care wards regularly missed more than 20 per cent of planned nurses.
And more than half (55 per cent) of hospital maternity services missed 10 per cent of planned nurses and midwives.
Separate figures suggest there are 27,500 nursing vacancies across the health service in England. The ‘nurse fill rate’ was published from 2014 following the Mid Staffordshire scandal, in which patients were neglected and suffered poor care, leading to high death rates.
An inquiry found nurse understaffing was a contributing factor in the tragedy and urged ministers to provide transparency around shortages.
This was initially done but the data has been hidden from public view for the past six years, even though officials continued to collect it. The figures come after a University of Southampton study of more than 600,000 NHS patients concluded that ‘risk of death was increased when patients were exposed to low staffing from registered nurses’.
Professor Peter Griffiths, chairman in health services research at the university, said understaffing was now ‘the norm’ on some wards. He told the Mail: ‘Patients treated on wards with a shortage of nurses are more likely to die or come to harm. There can be no brushing the dangers under the carpet.
‘If wards are falling short on average, it means on some days they are falling very short. These figures are powerfully concerning and show patients are at risk.’
Rachel Power, chief executive of the Patients Association, said: ‘Staff shortages directly impact patient safety and outcomes, and limit the ability of patients to be actively involved in decisions about their healthcare.
‘Workforce recruitment and retention remain critical factors to both the success of the future of the NHS, and the safety and quality of care for patients.’
Robert Wilson, head of the joint policy unit for baby charities Sands and Tommy’s, said: ‘Too many babies are dying because of care that is not in line with nationally agreed standards.’
NHS England said: ‘Safe staffing is a priority for the NHS and the number of nurses – and midwives – working in the health service has reached its highest level ever, with improved retention and significantly fewer vacancies, but we know there is more to do.’
The Department for Health said: ‘We hugely value the work of talented nurses, and our work to rebuild the NHS will benefit staff as well as patients.’
Channel 4 News has used the data to create NurseCheck – a public information tool.
