SICKNESS absence among staff at East Lancashire Hospitals has fallen by more than 11 per cent in just 12 months.

A series of innovative initiatives helped reduce the number of staff off work at any one time from 5.6 per cent in 2008/09 to 4.4 per cent in 2010/11.

And in the past year alone, the amount of money the trust had to spend on temporary staff fell from £12.2million to £11.1million – a saving of more than £1million.

In response to high rates of absence two years ago, East Lancashire Hospitals introduced a 24-hour counselling service, free for all staff to access both over the phone and face-to-face, at a cost of £40,000 per year.

A new Fast Physio service, introduced last September, has also helped more than 500 employees either return to work or avoid time off with fast-track support and treatment for back and joint pain.

More than a third of all sickness absence in the UK is caused by musculoskeletal problems.

Clinical lead physiotherapist Lee Barnes, who runs the service, said: “Ours is a unique service in the north west, but it is modelled on one introduced in Lothian, which saved that trust more than £300,000 in sickness absence days and reduced the recurrence of musculoskeletal disorders among staff by 74 per cent in its first nine months.

“Some staff just need advice on useful stretches to help keep their joints healthy, while others need more intensive intervention and treatment.”

Information including exercise plans and financial advice is also available through a First Assist employee assistance program website.

The trust said the initiatives were supported by a new, ‘more robust’ staff sickness absence policy, to ensure absence was appropriately managed across the organisation.

Ian Brandwood, director of human resources, said: “The vast majority of people want to be at work and not at home feeling ill, so we want to do everything we can to help them.

He said that next month the trust would launch a revamped health and wellbeing strategy.

He said: “We have come a long way, but there is still scope for further improvement.”