Public Servant Lifestyle

More than half of NHS staff say that they regularly work unpaid overtime, while one in four staff say that they have been harassed or abused by patients or their relatives in the last year.

Despite this, NHS staff say that they are generally satisfied with their work and committed to providing the best possible care for patients.

These are some of the findings of the Healthcare Commission's second national NHS staff survey - the largest workforce survey in the world, with more than 217,000 NHS staff from 572 organisations in England taking part.

About a third of staff are regularly working paid overtime, more than half report working unpaid extra hours, with 12% working six or more hours of unpaid overtime in an average week. When these staff are asked why they work unpaid overtime, the most common reasons given are that they want to provide the best possible care for patients, and do not want to let down the people they work with.

Since the 2003 survey, there has been an increase in the proportion of NHS staff receiving training and appraisals. In 2004, 93% of staff say that they have received some training in the last year, compared with 89%, in 2003. Some 63% of staff report receiving an appraisal, an increase of 3% from last year's survey.

However, there has been little change, since 2003, in the levels of violence and harassment reported by staff. More than one in four (27%) of staff have been harassed, bullied or abused at work, in the past twelve months, by patients or their relatives; this rises to 37%, if bullying and harassment from colleagues is included. Some 14% of respondents have been physically attacked by patients or their relatives in the past year - a further 1% of staff reporting that they have experienced violence from colleagues.

This year, the survey includes a new question on whistle-blowing, which finds that 78% of staff report that they know how to report any concerns they had about negligence or wrong doing by staff in their organisation. Almost six out of ten (59%) report that there is a confidential whistle-blowing system in place.

Healthcare Commission Chief Executive Anna Walker said:"It is clear from this survey that NHS staff remain committed to providing good patient care and helping their colleagues. Staff are generally satisfied with their work, and there are welcomed increases in the number of staff receiving training and appraisals.

"However, it is worrying that little has changed with regards to the harassment and violence towards NHS staff. A staggering 15% of staff said they had been physically attacked at work in the past 12 months. The fact that over a third of staff say they suffer from work-related stress is a major concern, which trusts must tackle".

The overall aim of this survey is to gather information to help provide better care for patients and improve the working lives of those who provide this care. Results from this survey can be used by trusts to inform local improvements in working conditions and practices. Trusts will also be able to compare themselves to other, similar NHS organisations.

Other key findings include:

Work Life Balance

83% of staff report that their employer offers at least one flexible working option, with the most common being job sharing, working reduced hours, team-led rotas and flexi-time.

Almost half of all NHS staff involved in the survey are living with dependants. Of those staff, 35% say they have access to a childcare co-ordinator and 25% have access to subsidised childcare.

Health & Safety

61% of staff have received some health and safety training from their employer in the last 12 months.

Work-Related Stress

96% report access to occupational health services at work.

80% report access to counselling services, compared to 73% last year.

44% of staff report having seen at least one error that could have hurt either staff or patients in the previous month, compared to 47% last year.

36% of staff have suffered from work-related stress in the past year, compared with 39%, in 2003.

The NHS staff survey was conducted in October 2004 and is the largest workforce survey in the world. 572 organisations (all trusts in England) took part in the survey. A total of 217,968 NHS employees responded, a response rate of 60%. This was a 4% increase in response rate from the 2003 survey. The Healthcare Commission exists to promote improvements in the quality of healthcare and public health through independent, authoritative, patient-centred assessments of the performance of those who provide services.

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