CONCERN has been raised over plans to force nurses at city hospitals to take a one-hour unpaid lunch break.

A doctor last night said the move could put patients’ lives at risk and hit nurses in the pocket, while a union said the move was part of cost saving.

But last night, health bosses said the move would maintain patient safety and ensure all staff took adequate breaks – and that there would be enough cover at all times.

At the moment, nurses employed by the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust (ORH) take a one-hour break – 30 minutes’ of which is paid.

However, the new plan would see nurses who work a 12.5-hour day forced to take a full hour unpaid.

A doctor from the hospital – who asked not to be named – contacted the Oxford Mail to voice concern about the plan.

He said allowing nurses to take a full hour, when they can potentially leave the hospital site, would put patients’ safety at risk.

The doctor added: “I work in a busy unit and I know if things were going badly wrong, every single nurse would be by my patient’s side if I were to shout loudly enough.

“When the unit is busy – which is most of the time – they rarely take their full lunch break. On top of this, the senior nurse on the unit also holds a bleeper to attend arrest calls.

“This job cannot be delegated to a less well-trained nurse and if there is not someone available, the sister regularly holds this bleeper over their break and will drop everything to save a life.”

The doctor said nurses would not have to stay on the hospital site during their full hour lunch break, in line with European law, which is not the case at the moment.

He added: “Suddenly your patient is dying and there are no willing hands to hear your calls...they are all having lunch in Headington.

“Our nurses work really hard as it is and will, at the drop of a hat, stay late or work through their lunch.

“They are already facing a real terms pay cut over the next few years and now they are going to owe the trust for eating their lunch.

“This change would be equivalent to asking nurses to work an extra day a month for free.”

Mark Ladbrooke, a representative of Unison Health Oxfordshire, said the proposal was not unusual for hospital trusts in the current climate.

He said: “All trusts are being told to make savings where they can, and there are increasing demands for staff to take on more work even though many already have difficulty in taking their statutory breaks.

“We would urge staff at the JR to contact the union.”

The Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust, which manages the John Radcliffe and Churchill hospitals, as well as the Horton Hospital in Banbury, said nurses would not take the hour beak at the same time.

Spokesman Heather Barnett said they would work to a rota ensuring enough nurses were on hand for patients.

She added: “There are currently a variety of shift patterns in operation across the trust so we are moving towards standardising break times and shift patterns for all nursing staff.

“This will help to maintain safety by ensuring that all staff have adequate breaks through their shift and bring us in line with the requirements of the Working Time Regulations.”