THE NHS wants all front-line health workers to have a flu jab this winter, warning trusts that staff refusing the vaccine could be banned from treating patients.

Between September 2017 and February 2018 more than 40 per cent of front-line NHS workers at Dorset HealthCare were not vaccinated, during the worst flu season in a decade.

The same was true of 30 per cent of such staff at the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals and Dorset County Hospital, while only 24 per cent were not vaccinated at Poole Hospital.

The NHS says making vaccination "near universal" will protect patients in higher-risk clinical environments, like neonatal intensive care and cancer wards.

Chief nurse for NHS England Jane Cummings said that "myths" persist around the flu vaccine, with the "big one" being that it gives people the flu.

She said: "By getting vaccinated against flu, healthcare workers can protect themselves, their families, colleagues and patients, making sure we have a healthy workforce and helping to reduce the pressure on services over winter."

Up to 50 per cent of people with the flu may not even know they have it, but for patients with weakened immune systems or respiratory problems, the disease can be life-threatening.

The NHS said trusts should "take appropriate steps to maintain the safety of the service", including transferring unvaccinated workers away from high-risk patients.

It said recent NICE guidelines show a link between lower rates of staff vaccination and increased patient death.

It also said flu-related staff sickness put pressure on other employees.

Public Health England figures reveal that of the 4,105 doctors, nurses, clinical staff and support workers at Dorset HealthCare with direct patient contact, 2,412 did get the vaccine, or 59 per cent.

The England average is 69 per cent of front line staff vaccinated.

At Royal Bournemouth it was 3,075 out of 4,386 front line staff and at Dorset County 1,708 out of 2,437, 70 per cent for both.

At Poole Hospital it was 2,641 out of 3,469, 76 per cent.

Public service trade union Unison said the NHS should encourage staff to get the flu jab but not make it compulsory.

Head of health Sara Gorton said: "We need to understand why vaccination rates vary so much between different health organisations.

"Some struggle to get teams who are trained to administer the jab to staff working in remote or varied locations."

She added: "Healthcare staff may choose not to get the jab for fear of allergic reactions, or a phobia around needles."

Public Health England said it encourages action from professional health bodies to increase vaccine uptake.

The agency's medical director Paul Cosford said: "There is a dual responsibility on trusts and healthcare workers to get rates as high as possible."