Coronavirus: Mid Yorks nurses given 'cagoules' instead of gowns

Mid Yorkshire Hospitals Trust accepted the coveralls - which resemble cagoules or raincoats - were "not ideal"

Nurses have been left in tears after being given what look like cagoules to protect themselves at an NHS trust, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said.

Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust said it was trying to conserve stocks in the "absence of certainty" about the next delivery of gowns.

The RCN said only the proper equipment was good enough to guarantee the safety of nurses.

The Department of Health has been asked for comment.

Glenn Turp, from the RCN, said staff had complained they did not have adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) and had been given clothing which resembled a cagoule or raincoat.

"They are so worried and afraid, they cry before they go to work, they cry at work and they cry when they come home," he said.

"They are quite frankly scared of contracting the virus, infecting family and friends and not being able to look after the patients."

The trust's chief executive Martin Barkley said it was doing all it could to source further deliveries, but to help protect existing supplies it had bought 6,000 two-piece coveralls, which were fluid-repellent in line with Public Health England guidance.

"We fully recognise these coveralls are not ideal; they are more uncomfortable for staff and are more laborious to take on and off," he said.

"However, our first priority is to keep our staff safe, and these coveralls will do so in the absence of certainty about the next delivery of long-sleeved gowns."

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The RCN's Mr Turp accepted the trust was doing its best, but added: "Only approved PPE can be acknowledged as providing the highest levels of safety and protection to patients and nurses."

Yvette Cooper, the Labour MP for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford, said the government had been warned of a shortage at Mid Yorkshire.

"We're over a month into this crisis, we should not be asking our health heroes to put themselves at risk.

"The government needs to be open and transparent about where the shortages are and work with business to solve them.

"I'm calling on the Department of Health to urgently increase supplies to Mid-Yorkshire Trust and to work with UK manufacturers to urgently deliver more."