The energy crisis that is affecting the UK could soon have an impact on hospitals, who could have to pay an extra £2 million a month to deal with rising fuel prices.

A report from the British Medical Journal (BMJ) suggests that this "eye-watering" figure could end up compromising patient care without support from the Government.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said in the report they were expecting the £2m figure for gas and electricity in January and February 2023 in comparison to the same months from this year.

Great Ormond Street Hospital in London is expecting costs to double, while Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust is anticipating its total energy bill for 2022/23 to be almost 130% higher than in 2021/22.

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Some trusts are not expecting price hikes due to securing longer-term energy deals with suppliers, locking them in until a certain rate.

Rory Deighton, senior acute lead at the NHS Confederation, told The BMJ, “This isn’t an abstract problem as the gap in funding from rising inflation will either have to be made up by fewer staff being employed, longer waiting times for care, or other areas of patient care being cut back.

“The new prime minister must provide a top-up in this autumn’s budget or any emergency budget they hold to make up the shortfall.

“The NHS needs at least £4 billion to make up for inflation during this year alone, and that is before we face a winter of even higher wholesale energy prices.

“A failure to properly compensate the NHS for inflation will only heighten pressure on our health service as we move towards a winter that we know will be particularly challenging this year.”

A government spokesperson said: “NHS England has provided local NHS organisations with an additional £1.5 billion in 2022/23 to cope with inflation and other cost pressures, including rising energy prices.

“In 2021, NHSE published its Estates Delivery Plan which sets out the measures organisations should take to reduce their energy emissions and maximise efficiency.”