A TRADE union has accused the NHS of over-relying on temporary nurses after they provided more than two million hours of care for patients in Scotland's biggest health board area.

New figures shows the number of 'bank nurses', who step in to plug gaps on the wards, across NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde [NHS GGC] has climbed 15 per cent over the past year.;

Health bosses were left with a bill of £36 million in the 12 months to April, an increase in excess of £4 million on the previous year, for the cost of hiring the workers from an NHS 'bank' of staff and others from private agencies.

Matt McLaughlin, regional organiser for Unison, said the figures reflected a staffing crisis which would affect the way patients were looked after.

He said: "The over-reliance on bank nurses and consistent short staffing in wards and clinical areas has a direct impact on patient care. Our nursing members will always try their best, but if you are working in an unfamiliar area with patients you don't know, in a workplace that is already bursting at the seams, health care can be compromised. This is not just a workplace staffing issue, it is a direct patient care issue."

NHS employees have been registering concerns about staffing shortages at least 50 times a week.

It comes as The Herald campaigns for a review of capacity in health and social care services, including staff numbers, to ensure they are designed to cope with the growing elderly population.

The latest figures on use of the nurse bank by NHS GGC shows bank nurses worked for 2,171,665 hours in 2013-14, compared to 1,878,409 the year before.

Mr McLaughlin said: "These figures suggest that in any one week Glasgow health board could be as many as 1,000 members of staff short in the workplace. Yes, they are filling these hours with bank staff, but many of these bank workers will be existing staff working in excess of their contracted hours or will be existing staff who are on short hours contracts and are being denied full-time permanent work."

Earlier this year it emerged the NHS across Scotland spent an extra £17m on bank and agency nurses, driving the total cost of hiring temporary staff for short term cover to £118.2m in 2013-14.

A spokesman for NHS GGC said: "We operate a very successful nurse bank which ensures that there are no gaps in staffing levels due to vacancies or unplanned leave.

"In addition we have also increased our permanent staffing levels over the last couple of years and the use of bank staff sits around 5 to 6 per cent year on year of our total nursing workforce.

"Scotland's NHS uses a Staff Bank system to ensure access to a safe, reliable and appropriately trained temporary workforce.

"The Staff Bank means the NHS does not have to turn to expensive agencies when temporary staff are required at short notice."