THE number of nurses employed at the region's biggest hospital is to be reviewed after finance watchdogs ruled there were too many.
The Audit Commission also revealed the level of higher-earning grade nurses at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire was too high.
The criticism comes as the Hartshill complex is about to start kicking patients off waiting lists because it is spending millions of pounds too much.
Auditors highlighted how the hospital had higher nursing ratios than similar-sized trusts prompting health bosses to launch an investigation into numbers, costings and skill mix of staff on wards.
But the conclusions have baffled nursing leaders who say they fail to take into account the size, catchment area and unique status of the hospital, which all demand a high proportion of staff with greater experience and expertise.
The finance regulators said that on top of the high staffing, the hospital also had the biggest percentage of junior sister/senior staff nurse grades than of all similar-sized trusts.
Called Band Six nurses, they are paid between �25,000 to �32,000 a year as opposed to the Band Five grade which attracts salaries from �21,000 to �27,000.
In the annual letter to the trust by the commission, auditor Mark Stocks said: "My review of ward staffing identified the hospital has high levels of nursing staff on most wards with the highest percentage of Band Six nurses leading to corresponding high staff costs.
" This is when it is compared to other trusts with a similar mix of patients.
"I recommended the trust review its nurse staffing taking into consideration value for money and professional judgement over levels.
"That review to establish sustainable and safe staffing has resulted in changed establishments for clinical divisions and the hospital expects them to bring ward staffing more in line with similar trusts."
About half of the 7,000-strong workforce at the complex are nurses and their pay is the biggest single item of its �414 million annual budget.
But partly because it has been treating thousands more patients than the primary care trust has funded, it must now make cuts of �6.3 million by March 31.
Chris Bourne, pictured below, senior steward of the Royal College of Nursing branch at the hospital, said there was currently an average of six Band Six nurses per ward and while the trust had proposed to reduce it to four, that had not yet happened.
He added: "We argue that a high level of skilled staff is needed in view of us being a teaching hospital with core services for a large area of population and specialised services for an even bigger area.
"And as we have no other hospital near us we are in a unique position. We would certainly oppose plans to downgrade the level of skill and expertise on wards."
Diabetic Helena Arnold, aged 64, from Tunstall, spent 10 weeks at the hospital, mainly on wards 103 and 109. Husband, Fred said: "I can't believe they are saying the place is overstaffed with too many high grade nurses. If anything there are not enough nurses there."
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