2 hours ago
4
NHS staff who care for patients in their own homes fear some areas have become “no-go zones” for them because of the presence of St George’s flags, health leaders have said.
Black and Asian staff have been left feeling “deliberately intimidated” as a result of the flags that were put up in many parts of England during the summer, according to the chief executive of one NHS trust in England, who asked to remain anonymous.
“We saw during the time the flags went up, our staff, who are a large minority of black and Asian staff, feeling deliberately intimidated,” he said.
“It felt like the flags were creating no-go zones. That’s what it felt like to them. You add on top of that real autonomous working, that real bravery of working in people’s homes, with an environment … [where] it feels like it’s an area that’s designed to exclude them.”
He said his staff had felt intimidated, “and, if I’m honest, in many cases I think that’s what it was designed to feel like”, he added.
The disclosure comes a week after Wes Streeting, the health secretary, said NHS staff were bearing the brunt of a return of “ugly” racism reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s.
A second trust chief executive said the “springing up of flags everywhere has created another form of intimidation and concern for many”.
They recounted how a member of their staff, who is white and has mixed-race children, had asked some people who were putting up flags to move so that she could park her car.
“The individuals filmed what was happening and then followed her, and she continued to receive abuse over a series of several days, not because she objected to the flags but because she disturbed them.”
The Department of Health and Social Care advised that health personnel who suffer threats or aggression against themselves or their families should report the incident to the police.
The Royal College of Nursing said the fear created by the flags was part of an alarming wider picture. Prof Nicola Ranger, the union’s general secretary, said: “A sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric is fuelling a growing cesspool of racism, including against international and ethnic minority nursing staff, without whom our health and care system would simply cease to function.
“Those working in the community feel especially vulnerable and employers have a duty to ensure they are protected.
“Following a summer of further racist disorder, it is little wonder a growing number of nursing staff report feeling unsafe, particularly when having to work on their own and often at night.
A DHSC spokesperson said: “There is no place for intimidation, racism or abuse in our country or our NHS. Instances of threats and aggression towards staff or their families should be reported to the police.
“Our flags represent our history, our heritage, and our values. They are a symbol of our nation and belong to all of us – not just some of us.”
Meanwhile, NHS bosses fear that the five-day strike by resident doctors in England starting on Friday – their 13th since March 2023 – could “crush” signs that the health service is starting to improve.
“More strikes now could crush this fragile, hard-won progress, wiping out a once in a generation opportunity to fix the health service,” said Daniel Elkeles, the chief executive of hospitals group NHS Providers.
