A LEAKED memo has revealed the scale of NHS staff self-isolating at Northern Ireland's biggest health trust - with Covid-related absence rocketing by more than 150 per cent in a week.
Documents sent to senior management at Belfast health trust warn of the "significant" impact of the absences on its workforce due to its already high numbers of unfilled jobs.
While the vast majority of frontline staff are fully vaccinated, the massive spike in infection rates has led to many workers being 'pinged' by the Covid-19 app, alerting them to isolate after coming into close contact with a positive case.
In England, some double-jabbed key workers are now exempt from self-isolating - but this has not been extended to the north.
The Belfast trust document, dated Friday July 23 and seen by The Irish News, gives an overview of the daily Covid pressures across its hospital and community settings.
Under 'workforce' issues, it states: "This day last week, we had 188 staff off work with Covid-19 related issues, which is significant given that on top of these absences we have ongoing workforce challenges because of high vacancy levels within the Trust.
"Today, 474 staff are off work with Covid-19 related issues, and numbers have increased significantly in the last week."
The development comes as the trust last night issued a social media appeal for off-duty staff to help teams "under extreme pressure" at the Royal Victoria Hospital and Mater Hospital "caring for an increasing number of Covid-19 patients, alongside emergency admissions."
"We are asking for help from you, our trust nursing staff, to work this evening and over-night," it said.
The South Eastern trust issued a similar appeal, saying it had significant staff shortages due to a rise in workers self-isolating.
On Friday, the Belfast trust was also forced to postpone planned orthopaedic operations, such as hip and knee replacements, due to the rising number of Covid admissions.
In recent days more than 40 per cent of the north's overall coronavirus inpatients were hospitalised in the Belfast trust - and the leaked memo warns that "an upward projection is forecast based on recent numbers".
Three critically ill patients with the virus were in ICU in the Belfast trust as well as "one suspected" case.
"The current Covid-19 related inpatient levels are at a similar level to early October. Today's number in hospital equates to 26 per cent of the total at the peak of Surge 3 on 20th January (272)," the management document adds.
Meanwhile, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) also confirmed yesterday that 54 of its frontline staff were on Covid-related leave in addition to almost 120 on non-Covid sick leave by the end of last week.
A NIAS spokesman stressed that contingency measures were in place for urgent and life-threatening cases.
"The nearest available and appropriate ambulance will always be despatched in response to the most clinically urgent calls," he said.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) trade union also warned virus-related absences were "rising rapidly" among staff, saying the the impact will be "felt most acutely on the frontline".
"Nursing staff have taken every measure to protect themselves and their patients, but everyone has a part to play," Rita Devlin, acting RCN director, said.
"If another surge is allowed to take hold that results in multiple hospital admissions, we will be facing yet further delays in treatment for many patients who are already feeling the effects of cancelled appointments and surgery due to the pandemic."
