THE number of agency workers hired at Westmorland General Hospital in the last three years has been revealed.

Figures revealed in a Freedom of Information submitted by The Westmorland Gazette show 54 agency staff were recruited to work at the Kendal hospital.

The University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust, which runs WGH, said they always try to 'avoid' using agency staff and explore their options 'internally'.

These agency workers include those recruited to fill the nursing and medical departments.

It also includes allied health professionals, non-medical and non-clinical staff.

Between 2021 and 2022, 22 agency workers were recruited for Westmorland General, including 12 professionals working in the nursing department. 

The following year there were 16 agency workers with the highest number being in the medical department with 10 professionals hired.

So far between 2023 and 2024, 16 professionals have been called up, including eight in the medical department, three allied health professionals and three non-medical or non-clinical professionals.

As stated on the FOI, the workers come from agencies such as Retinue, Adecco and Vox.

Alison Balson, Chief People Officer at UHMBT, said: "We will always try to avoid using agency staff and therefore, if we have gaps in our rotas we will explore options internally, including asking people to work additional shifts or using our own internal teams. However, if we exhaust these options, to ensure that patients are cared for safely, we will need to use agency staff.

"At UHMBT, as with all other NHS trusts, full due diligence is undertaken covering areas such as right to work, DBS, qualification checks and awareness of our Trust's 'Purpose, Vision and Values'."

A report published by the Royal College of Nursing in 2023 revealed that findings from a Freedom of Information request to NHS trusts in England expose a total of £3.2bn spent on agency staff by hospitals between 2020 and 2022.

Costs were highest in London, where hospitals spent £630m on agency staff, while in the North of England, hospitals paid out £109m for staff working temporary shifts across the three years.

Regarding the costs of recruiting agency workers, Alison added: "Our agency spend last year was below the nationally set agency ceiling and this continues this year.

"We continue to work hard to reduce the amount of agency spending by focusing on recruitment and developing many apprentice roles."