Hospital trust refuses to disclose staff Covid-19 numbers

To date, the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust has revealed that three of it’s frontline staff have died after contracting Covid-19 but it will not provide a detailed insight into the welfare of its workers.

More than 1,000 patients have been admitted to its hospitals with the virus, half of which have recovered.

As of May 5, 401 patients at the trust's hospitals have died after contracting Covid-19.

Speaking in March, trust chiefs confirmed three of its staff were currently in its intensive care unit fighting for their own lives due to the virus.

Since then it has said it has not provided information on how many more staff have been affected by the virus and whether this has seen them taken to intensive care.

It has also not provided an update on the welfare of the three who were fighting for their lives.

When asked this week to provide information on the number of hospital staff who have contracted the virus, the number currently off due to the virus, the number who have been hospitalised, the number which have recovered and the number who have died, the trust declined

Instead, a spokeman said: “We are committed to keeping the communities we serve fully briefed about NHS services throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We do this primarily through our board meeting held in public and through our governors, who are elected by members or appointed by our partner organisations.

“We share regular service updates with our communities through the media and social media when appropriate.”

So far, the trust has revealed three deaths involving Covid-19 among its frontline staff.

On April 20, Manjeet Singh Riyat, an A&E consultant at Royal Derby who had led its emergency department for decades and the first UK Sikh to hold such a position, died aged 52.

On March 28, Amged El-Hawrani, an ear, nose and throat consultant at Queen’s in Burton, died aged 55.

On April 26, Eileen Landers, a cleaner at Queen’s Hospital in Burton, died aged 67.