Northants NHS worker ill with Covid-19, says trust chairman

A staff member from one of the county’s two hospitals is ill with Covid-19, the trust chairman said at a meeting.

Alan Burns, chairman of both Kettering and Northampton hospitals, was speaking at yesterday’s (May 12) virtual Health and Wellbeing Board meeting. No further details were given about what job the staff member has, or how long they have been ill.Mr Burns said: “We have had a number of staff who have been ill, one who still is ill now.

“On the other hand, as a county we got away in the middle of the pack. We are not the West Midlands, we are not Cumbria, we are not South Essex, on the other hand we are not Lincolnshire or Cornwall.

"So the staff are frightened and that leads us to the recovery exercise. There is a big effect on staff. A lot have not had days off for quite a long time.

"As we move into a slightly easier phase (in inverted commas) we will be trying to give our staff a lot of time off and increasing our allowance for how many staff can be off at one time. Partly to prepare them for whatever comes in the winter. Partly because they need a break.”