National shortages mean masks worn by doctors and nurses are date expired at Milton Keynes Hospital

A concerned medic sent the Citizen a photo of one of the FFP3 masks in its packaging, showing the expiry date of May 31 2019.

She said: "I am no expert, but during our infection control training. Expired items should not be used and thrown away.

"Now that we have the Covid situation, Public Health England, infection control, health and safety and the government say they are deemed safe for use."

Hospital bosses say the masks are perfectly safe.

An MKUH spokesman said: “Every piece of PPE supplied to our trust is safe to use and will effectively protect staff if used correctly. All PPE is robustly tested before being shared with trusts and anything that is not considered up to standard is destroyed."

He added: "We have communicated this to hospital staff to assure them that they are receiving the right levels of protection from the PPE issued and if staff are concerned, we are happy to go through this with them again.”

NHS Trusts have received briefs from Public Health England and the Department of Health and Social Care to explain the stringent testing process the PPE has been put through to ensure it is safe for use..