Study could heal sick doctors

Researchers will look at staff at six UK hospitals

Researchers have won more than £100,000 to study sickness in doctors and nurses.

A team at the University of Southampton hopes to discover if more immunisation against flu would cut winter sick days in hospitals.

Flu jabs are currently available for staff on a voluntary basis, but few choose to have one.

Dr Julia Smedley is leading the £111,000 Department of Health study, which will look at staff in six hospitals across the UK.

Winter pressure

The two-year project aims to find out how many staff call in sick with flu, why take-up of the vaccine is patchy and if it helps to save money.

Researchers will also look into ways of persuading staff to have the jab to ease winter pressure in hospitals.

Dr Smedley said: "At the moment, we know the vaccine prevents flu but can only guess whether wider immunisation among nurses and other workers would relieve pressure on the wards at peak times.

"We have a number of questions that need answers."