Staff off work due to stress has cost a health board almost £30 million in five years.

Figures from a Freedom of Information request show that 411,573 days were lost between 2012 and 2017 at the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board.

The numbers were for absences due to anxiety,stress,depression and other psychological illnesses.

Last year 76,919 days were lost because of these mental health issues at a cost of £5,428,479, making it the highest in terms of days and costs over the five year period. 2013 saw the lowest number of days at 63,869 at a cost of £4,687,537.

Over the five years the cost to board of missing work due to stress was £29,623,518 for a total of 411,573 lost days.

A spokesman for the health board said it had taken steps to ensure the well being of its staff.

He said: “Over the last 18 months significant efforts have been made to raise awareness around the importance of mental health, both within the health board and in wider society.

“Providing healthcare can be physically and emotionally demanding, and we work hard to ensure that quality support and assistance is available for all of our colleagues.

“Efforts over the last 12 months to develop the support available include training a network of more than 200 mental health champions to encourage open discussion of mental health within the workplace, regular training on topics including stress and anxiety, and signing up to the Time to Change Wales charter, which promotes mental health and wellbeing in the workplace.

“We have more than 16,500 members of staff, and our rates of sickness are below the Welsh average.”

But Tina Donnelly, Director Royal College of Nursing, Wales, felt the numbers show an ongoing problem with staff being overworked.

She said: “These numbers demonstrate that all areas of health care are currently staffed by overworked professionals who are doing their best in the most stressful of circumstances. They cannot, and should not, be expected to continue like this.

"Stress and fatigue impact on patient safety. Staff experience stress when they feel unable to cope with work demands or the work environment. Stress impacts productivity, to the detriment of physical or mental health. 

"We need to see initiatives from the health board to reduce and limit workplace stress.”

Responding to the figures, Dr David Bailey, Chair of the British Medical Association’s Welsh council said: “Staff in the NHS are working under considerable pressure in under-resourced environments to deliver the best possible care for patients. This dedication is sadly impacting on their own mental well-being.

“Sickness absence does have a cost on the NHS and that figure is rising. More needs to be spent on services that help staff with their own mental ill health as well as on recruiting enough staff to meet service demand.”