18.12.14
Staff survey shows an increase in optimism in Scotland
NHS employees in Scotland are more optimistic about the health service then they were a year ago, according to the annual staff survey.
Compared to last year’s survey, 12% more staff agreed the care of patients was their health board’s top priority and 61% would recommend their workplace as a good place to work – up 10% on 2013.
Nearly four-fifths (79%) of respondents agreed they get the help and support they need from colleagues, and 90% of NHS staff said they were happy to go the ‘extra mile’ at work when required.
Health secretary Shona Robison said: “Staff are the cornerstone of our health service and without their commitment and dedication, NHS Scotland simply wouldn’t be able to provide the same high standards of patient care.
“This annual feedback from staff throughout the organisation is extremely important in letting us know what is going right and where we can make improvements.”
A total of 55,077 NHS Scotland staff responded to the survey, 10,000 more than last year, which represents a 35% response rate – an increase in participation of 7% compared to 2013.
The survey shows that in 26 out of the 29 national core questions, more staff responded positively compared to last year.
Other key findings include:
- 86% of staff are clear what their duties and responsibilities are (an increase of 3% since 2013)
- 6% said they had experience unfair discrimination from their manager in the last 12 months (down from 8% in 2013)
- 9% said they had experienced bullying or harassment from their manager (down 2% on 2013)
When asked about being consulted about change at work, 29% responded positively and 46% negatively, while 33% were positive and 46% negative about there being "enough staff for me to do my job properly".
However when it comes to staffing levels the number drops to 25% positive responses if you only consult nurses.
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Scotland director Theresa Fyffe commented: “The results from this year’s survey show that, overall, staff’s experience of working for NHS Scotland has improved in many areas and there has also been a welcome increase in the number of staff taking part in the survey. Given the pressures our NHS is currently facing, this reflects staff’s dedication and commitment to the organisation.”
She added: “After years of cuts, the number of nurses and midwives working in our NHS is now going up, but so, too, is demand for services. We cannot continue to ask nurses to juggle all the demands they face trying to deal with more and more patients, without enough staff. Budgets are very tight and likely to become more so over the next years, so we must look at how we can do things differently if patient care is not to suffer and staff get to breaking point from pressure of work. We need a public debate about the sustainability of our NHS and how we can provide services, given our changing demographics and the inflationary pressures on NHS budgets as a result of new drugs and treatments and higher patient expectations. Without change, there is a danger that the improvements reported by staff this year may go into reverse.”
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