NHS staff take part in national survey

National Health Service (NHS) staff in Norfolk are being asked what they think about their working lives.

“The overall aim of the survey is to gather information that will improve the working lives of those who provide care for patients and in doing so help us all to provide even better care,” said Paul Forden, Chief Executive. 

“I urge all staff receiving a questionnaire to take part in this important national survey. Last year 67 per cent of employees returned completed questionnaires and this year we are hoping for even more.” 

From late September to early October a proportion of staff in every NHS trust in England will be invited to take part – about 370,000 people in total.

The survey contains questions about work life balance, team working, job satisfaction, training, management & supervision, violence and health & safety. It is organised by the independent inspection body, the Healthcare Commission, in conjunction with the Staff Survey Advice Centre at Aston University.

Healthcare Commission Chief Executive, Anna Walker, said; “The first two national NHS staff surveys in 2003 and 2004 were a great success with more than 200,000 people across the country taking part.

“The survey results have highlighted a number of important issues for staff, including for some, their experience of violence and harassment at work, stress and poor work life balance.  As a result of the 2003 survey findings, the Healthcare Commission made a series of recommendations to NHS organisations to tackle these problems.  The 2004 survey findings suggested that progress has already been made on several of these recommendations, and that generally speaking, staff in the NHS continue to be satisfied with their jobs.  This third survey in 2005 will allow us to continue to assess and monitor the way staff are managed and how the highlighted issues have been handled.”

The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Trust uses the staff views expressed in the survey to introduce improvements in working conditions. The national staff survey will also provide an opportunity for the Trust to benchmark itself against similar organisations and the national picture.
  
Collected data will be sent to Aston University in mid December and trusts will receive a detailed report of their survey findings in February 2006. The survey reports will be published by the Healthcare Commission in March 2006, together with a report of the overall national findings.