Nottingham hospitals strike averted after changes shelved

The trust said it had decided not to proceed in response to the "valuable feedback received"

Possible strike action at a Nottingham hospital looks to have been avoided after managers dumped controversial staffing plans.

Unison said staff at the Nottingham Urology Centre, based at City Hospital, raised concerns when they were told to also work on a gynaecology ward.

This, it was claimed, would impact on safe staffing levels.

The trust said it had decided not to proceed with the changes in response to the "valuable feedback received".

Wider complaints of staff being bullied were still being investigated, the union said

It had been proposed that four or five members of the City Hospital team would be temporarily relocated to the Queen's Medical Centre for one day each week.

Unison claimed the proposed changes would have required the theatres staff to perform gynae procedures on top of their day-to-day duties effectively asking them to learn another speciality with no additional staff provided.

But after 96% of votes in a ballot-backed strike action, the trust has shelved the plans.

Jamie Godber, Unison branch secretary said: "It's only right that management listen to and respect the wealth of experience staff on the shop floor bring to the table.

"We are pleased with the trust's display of common sense in this matter and we hope it continues throughout the investigative process and in our future engagements with the trust".

Dr Neil Pease, from Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "We always consult with staff members regarding proposals to improve ways of working, and decided not to proceed with these changes in response to the valuable feedback received."

The trust also emphasised there were no plans to reduce staffing levels under the proposals, which it said were designed to improve patient safety across our hospitals.

Separate claims of staff being bullied are with the trust's internal grievance procedures but the union said it had not ruled out taking any further steps if this process failed.