A SENIOR researcher from Oxford University has warned that leaving the European Union could be 'potentially catastrophic' for the NHS.

Lead author of the report in The Lancet medical journal Nick Fahy said health is not just a national matter and will suffer the condequences of Brexit.

He added: "Leaving the EU will have wide-ranging impacts on health and the national health service.

"These must be addressed now if the consequences of Brexit are not to be borne by the sick and the vulnerable."

The Lancet report examines the effects on the NHS of three possible Brexit scenarios: a "soft" departure that allows the UK to remain a member of the EU single market, a "hard" Brexit providing a free trade agreement between the UK and EU, and a "failed" Brexit that results in the UK falling back on World Trade Organisation rules.

Even a "soft" Brexit that retains access to the single market while restricting the free movement of people is likely to have a big impact on health care in the UK, it claims.

A total break with Brussels was expected to have far worse consequences.

After Brexit it will be increasingly difficult for the UK to recruit sufficient NHS and social care staff, according to the research.

Estimates for 2017 suggest that 60,000 people from the EU work in the NHS and 90,000 are employed in adult social care, with a concentration of staff in London and the south east. These regions would be especially vulnerable to labour shortages, said the authors.

Another risk highlighted in the report was the loss of funding to the NHS, both as a direct result of the European money stream being cut off, and indirectly from impacts on the UK economy.

A Government spokesman said: "We are committed to a world-class NHS, which is why we're backing it with an extra £8 billion investment by 2022 and are focused on getting a Brexit deal that is in the best interests of business, citizens and patients.

"We've made clear that the future of EU nationals should be a priority in Brexit negotiations so their valued contribution to the NHS can continue, but the NHS also needs more home-grown staff, so we'll be training an extra 1,500 doctors and 10,000 nurses, midwives and allied health professionals a year by 2020."