The gesture to say ‘thank you’ to NHS staff backfired massively (Picture: TikTok/evaoconnor32)
The gesture to say ‘thank you’ to NHS staff backfired massively (Picture: TikTok/evaoconnor32)

An NHS trust which handed out single teabags as a ‘thank you’ to staff says its gesture has been taken ‘out of context’.

A TikTok video showed a member of staff opening up a small envelope bearing the message: ‘A little treat to say thank you’.

The clip was captioned ‘What my dad got at work as a “treat”‘, with an accompanying post saying ‘#teaisahumanright’ and ‘#clapforourcarers’.

Viewers reacted with fury, with one saying: ‘Wow, a two pence gift. But you can’t get a break to use it. What an insult.’

Another wrote: ‘I saw this and I laughed before remembering a trust actually thought it would placate staff.

‘I’ve seen little packages with tea bags but that’s very different to a solitary tea bag.’

One TikTok user said: ‘Please tell me this is a joke? These workers are heroes. They should be getting free tea anyway. I’m fuming – the disrespect.’

The video’s creator replied: ‘We don’t get anything for free in the NHS. We have to pay for our own milk and teabags and coffee. That’s why this is a gift!’

Paul Aidan joked: ‘Even worse considering it costs £300 to boil a kettle at the moment.’

But the boss of Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust insisted the gesture had been taken out of context.

A spokesperson for the trust said it was a way to say ‘thank you’ to staff on International Day of the Midwife and International Nurses’ Day in May.

The trust’s chief executive Matthew Hopkins said: ‘Of course we are hugely grateful for the hard work done by all our staff caring for our communities and we are always seeking new ways to show appreciation and kindness to our teams.

‘As a thank you for all their incredible efforts during the pandemic we worked with our charity and our Trade Union partners to show our appreciation in a number of ways.

‘This included offering every colleague an additional paid day’s leave and for all our staff working over the Christmas and New Year fortnight, we provided a free meal each day.

‘In addition, we have a wide-ranging support offer to protect their mental and physical health and wellbeing and we continue to offer free parking for all staff.

‘By way of an extra small but sincere thank you to our midwives and nurses for International Day of the Midwife and International Nurses’ Day, back in May, we sent each of them a certificate and a gift bag with a number of items in, including a branded tea bag, to encourage them to take a break.

‘We wanted to let them know how much we appreciate all the hard work they do and also further raise awareness of the important work our hospital charity is doing to support our staff wellbeing.

‘It’s a shame that one small act of kindness, done with good intent as part of one of the many ways we say “thank you” has been taken out of context in this way.’

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