FOI 25-583 Back Pain or Burnout related Absence

Freedom of Information Request

Reference
FOI 25-583 Back Pain or Burnout related Absence
Request Date
16 Dec 2025
Response Date
19 Jan 2026
Information Requested
  1. Total number of staff in patient facing roles,  
  2. Number of patient facing staff currently off the road with back pain/ back problems only.  
  3. Front line operational working days (Full time equivalent) lost last year (Jan 2025 to end Dec 2025) to back pain  
  4. Total number of clinical staff currently off the road with stress or burnout only.  
  5. Front line operational working days (full time equivalent) lost last year (Jan 2025 to end Dec 2025) to stress and or burn out and or other mental health issues. 
Response

Q1 - The Scottish Ambulance Service publishes workforce information in its Annual Report & Accounts. The 2024/25 report notes the Service has over 5,700 members of staff, with detailed workforce metrics in the Staff Report section. As this information is publicly available, we are applying Section 25(1) (information otherwise accessible) and directing you to: 
• Annual Report & Accounts 2024/25: SCOTTISH AMBULANCE SERVICE (see “Who we are” and the Staff Report).  
• Index of Annual Reports: Annual Report and Accounts 

 

Q2 - We Have applied section 17 of the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002, this is information not held.  This has been applied because although we can only report of chief absence reasons.  We do not have a chief reason that would capture back pain/back problems only. 

 

Q3 - We Have applied section 17 of the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002, this is information not held.  This has been applied because although we can only report of chief absence reasons.  We do not have a chief reason that would capture back pain/back problems only 

 

Q4 - We Have applied section 17 of the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002, this is information not held.  This has been applied because although we can only report of chief absence reasons.  We do not have a chief reason that would capture stress or burnout only. 

 

Q5 - The Scottish Ambulance Service do not hold sickness absence counts in days, it is for this reason we have applied section 17 of the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002, as information not held.   

We can provide the total number of sickness hours lost for front line staff absence for anxiety/stress/depression from 01/01/2025 - 31/12/2025 was 188,031 hours. 

We have defined front line staff as Paramedics and Technicians, including Team Leaders.  It does not include front line scheduled care staff (PTS.) 

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