One in three NHS nurses are so tight for cash they use payday loans to feed their families.
A survey shows 34% borrow money on crippling short-term repayment rates that can top 1,300% annually.
Almost half admitted skipping meals because they are so hard up – and one in 10 used a food bank in the past year.
The revelations will raise fresh concerns over staff being well enough to maintain high standards of patient care.
Tonight, unions called for urgent support for those who put their lives on the line in the pandemic.
One health worker, who fears ending up homeless, said they are “merely existing” as they battle to stay afloat.
Researchers for NursingNotes and Nurses United UK polled 6,000 staff and found the number skipping meals is at 48% – up 8% in a year.
The number using food banks emerged as at least six NHS trusts have set up handout centres or voucher schemes.
One nurse told the poll: “I survive using food banks for my three children and fear what will happen over winter”.
A colleague – whose husband is also a nurse – added: “We have been juggling finances with several maxed-out overdrafts and credit cards for some years.
“But we have come to a point where we can’t juggle any more as the cost of living far outweighs anything we earn and owe, despite a most frugal lifestyle.As this is set to get much worse, we are worried we will lose our home.
“We are not living, we are merely existing. It’s unacceptable that as a professional with a university qualification in a demanding job where we are saving [lives], we are being so undervalued and treated with disrespect by the Government.”
Many loan firms offer cash advances in less than an hour, welcoming those with bad or no credit.
Some handouts come with stratospheric annual percentage rates – which are also applied to set-up fees.
In July 2022, the Government confirmed a pay rise of £1,400 for most NHS nurses, backdated to April 2022. For many, this is a below-inflation increase of just 4%, unions say.
The Royal College of Nursing wants a rise of 5% above inflation, which is currently at 9.9%. The union has called a strike ballot – delayed due to the Queen’s death – on October 6.
Patricia Marquis, RCN director for England, said: “That so many have been pushed to use payday loans or skip meals is not what nursing staff deserve.
“They have endured a decade of pay stagnation and spiralling living costs have forced some into poverty. Ministers need to urgently give nursing a fair pay rise to ensure we retain experienced staff.”
A Government source said officials had put in place wider support for nurses, including 40 mental health and wellbeing hubs backed by £45million over the next year, and commissioned NHS England to develop a long-term workforce plan.
