Nearly half of British employees carried on working while feeling unwell this summer, a survey has revealed. A poll of 2,000 people found 49% powered through illness for an average of six days.
Reasons for working while ill
Almost three in 10 (28%) said they did so because they had too much work, while 19% did not want to lose pay. Another 18% thought they could simply power through their illness, 17% had nobody available to cover them, and 16% worried their workload would pile up.
But struggling on came at a cost, with more than a quarter (28%) becoming less productive, a quarter (25%) struggled to concentrate, and almost a quarter (24%) felt worse by the end of the day.
Health warnings from doctors
Dr Reem Hasan, Chief Medical Officer at Vista Health and NHS GP, said: “It can be very easy to tell yourself you are too busy to take a break, attend an appointment or properly recover when you are unwell, particularly when you know colleagues are relying on you.
“But consistently putting work ahead of your health can be counterproductive. If you are feeling unwell, giving yourself the time to recover and seeking advice when you need it should be treated as a priority, rather than something to feel guilty about.”
It comes after the Royal College of Nursing warned that its members were collapsing at work and being forced to care for patients in temperatures above 30C. Testimonies gathered by the RCN said nurses had reported seizures and 'dripping with sweat from head to toe'.
Summer health impacts
The latest survey was commissioned by private diagnostics provider Vista Health. It also found 45% experienced trouble sleeping this summer. Almost a third (32%) struggled with stress or anxiety, while 31% suffered extreme tiredness or fatigue and a quarter (25%) experienced low mood.
Three in 10 Brits (29%) also admitted delaying a health appointment, test or check during the summer for an average of six weeks. Work was the biggest obstacle, with 35% saying they had simply been too busy with their job.
Half of Brits now worry they will head into autumn already feeling tired or run down, with 27% concerned about low energy and 24% worried about struggling to sleep or feeling burnt out.
Dr Hasan recommends paying attention to new or persistent symptoms, keeping health appointments and screening, protecting mental wellbeing and making small, realistic lifestyle changes. She added: “Heading into autumn does not have to mean making a dramatic health reset. It can be as simple as getting back into a regular sleep routine, taking the annual leave you are entitled to, keeping appointments you may have postponed and paying attention to symptoms that have not gone away. Small steps can make a meaningful difference, and the important thing is not to keep putting your health off until life feels less busy.”
