Happier, more engaged NHS staff lead to better patient care

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Northerner

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If care is to become more patient focused, the health service needs an improved culture from board to ward.

Patients should be at the heart of the NHS. This is a familiar message, and one that has been repeated in every major health policy document for more than a decade. A worthy aim, undoubtedly ? but who is responsible for turning rhetoric into reality?

Robert Francis QC last month presented the long-awaited final report of the public inquiry into Mid Staffordshire NHS foundation trust. The second of his 290 recommendations makes clear the importance of those on the frontline: all NHS staff "must adopt and demonstrate a shared culture where patient is the priority". Strong leadership and a common set of core values are vital and to achieve this there needs to be good communication between senior management and frontline staff.

The NHS is the world's fifth largest employer. The tenth annual NHS staff survey, published last week, saw more than 100,000 of the 1.4 million NHS employees in England giving their views on what it is like to work for the service. The survey, run by the Picker Institute for the Department of Health, is a vital source of information for understanding and improving the experience of staff in the NHS, and in turn helping to provide better care for patients.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/healthcare-network/2013/mar/04/happier-nhs-staff-better-patient-care
 
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