article_snippet.sent: Nurses forced to work 12-hour shifts amid staff shortages are treated like 'slave labour', a union has claimed.
article_snippet.sent: With a growing demand for nurses to work long hours, Unison has called for more research into the effects of workers' health.
article_snippet.sent: At a union's healthcare conference in Liverpool this week, one member highlighted how staff at a hospital in Staffordshire are expected to work six long days a week, totalling up to 78 hours a week.
article_snippet.sent: Jane Smith told colleagues: 'staff at a hospital in Staffordshire are so tired has a detrimental effect on patient care and (also) puts other staff at risk.'
article_snippet.sent: Nurses working 12-hour shifts amid staffing shortages in NHS are treated like 'slave labour', one Unison member has warned, as Jane Smith called for more research into how longer working hours affect staff health .
article_snippet.sent: Jane Smith said Jane Smith was aware of one nurse who had worked 11 consecutive long day shifts, the Nursing Times reported.
article_snippet.sent: But Ms Smith likened long shifts to 'slave labour', warning staff are falling sick due to exhaustion. 'warning staff are so tired has a detrimental effect on patient care and not only compromises warning staff own health but puts other staff at risk,' Ms Smith said. '
article_snippet.sent: There is a case for saying there is a better way [of organising shift work]' A motion calling for Unison to investigate the health impact of long shifts on nurses was passed at the conference.
article_snippet.sent: A recent study by a team at the University of Southampton found nurses who worked longer hours were more likely to suffer 'fatigue and decreased levels of alertness, potentially resulting in more adverse effects' 'Whoever forms the next Government must learn from this report and take immediate action to grow the nursing workforce, and ensure this report can keep up with demand with a sustainable and long-term plan.'
article_snippet.sent: Ms Smith warnings reflect the findings of a study, published last November, that warned nurses working 12 hours or longer were more likely to report poor patient care.
article_snippet.sent: Researchers found half of those questioned worked shifts less than or equal to eight hours, while 15 per cent worked 12 hours or longer.
article_snippet.sent: The authors said: 'Nurses working for 12 hours or longer were more likely to report poor or failing patient safety, poor or fair quality of care, and more care activities left undone. '
article_snippet.sent: Working overtime was also associated with reports of poor or failing patient safety, poor or fair quality of care, and more care left undone.'
article_snippet.sent: In addition the research revealed that nurses who worked longer hours were more likely to suffer 'fatigue and decreased levels of alertness, potentially resulting in more adverse effects'.
article_snippet.sent: The authors added: 'The degree to which nurses are subsidising health services through unpaid overtime and the impact of long hours and overtime on burnout have implications for both the costs and the effectiveness of extended shifts.'
article_snippet.sent: At the Unison conference, research associate Chiara Dall'Ora, who took part in the research at Southampton, said recent figures showed 35 per cent of UK nurses reported working 12-hour shifts.
highlights_snippet.sent: Unison member said tired staff have 'detrimental effect on patient care'
  Jane Smith likened longer working hours for NHS staff to 'slave labour'
  Called for more research to examine the impact on workers' health .