NURSING leaders warned today of falling staff numbers and growing demand causing “critical incidents” in hospitals as the toll of people contracting the Omicron variant of coronavirus mounts.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) reported mounting confusion among nurses over different Covid-19 measures introduced in England and the rest of Britain.

It also asked how demands for more staff to work in new Nightingale “hubs” were to be met as sickness absences increase.

The RCN, which has 465,000 members, called for the government to take a “more cautious approach” to tackling the virus.

It has written to Health Secretary Sajid Javid raising its concerns.

In a joint statement, RCN chairwoman Carol Popplestone and general secretary Pat Cullen said that the health and care service can “ill afford” mounting losses through illness as tens of thousands of nursing jobs are vacant and pressure increases.

“We continue to navigate the biggest health and care challenge the world has seen,” they said.

“It is confusing and concerning that the different UK governments have set out their own different rules and regulations in relation to the management of the pandemic.

“Nursing professionals are questioning the level and nature of the variation between governments.

“Aligned to this is the risk identified by our members and supported by figures issued by the NHS in England and which reveal high levels of staff absence due to Covid-19.

“The health and care system in England, already short tens of thousands of professionals, can ill afford the current losses.”

They said nurses are increasingly concerned over how temporary “Nightingale” centres will be staffed and standards of patient care maintained.