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New survey shows NHS Scotland staff 'at a crossroads'

RCN Scotland has welcomed the results of the latest survey of nurses and midwives but warns changes are needed for future of care

The latest survey of staff working for NHS Scotland has shown nurses and midwives feel they get enough support from colleagues – but that there are not enough of them.

NHS Scotland's staff survey 2015 was published today – at the end of what RCN Scotland associate director Norman Provan calls ‘a very challenging year for our healthcare professionals.’

A total of 60,681 staff were surveyed and as well as the support figure of 81%, the report shows 89% of respondents are willing to go the extra mile at work.

However, only 26% of nurses and midwives felt there were enough staff to do their job properly, up a single percentage point from the 2014 survey.

Additionally, only 39% of nurses and midwives agreed they could meet all the conflicting demands on their time, compared to 46% of all NHS staff.

Mr Provan said: ‘Demand on NHS services resources continues to outstrip supply, putting staff under enormous pressure.

‘In spite of that the dedication of our NHS staff to both patients and colleagues once again shines in this report.’

The number of nurses and midwives who believe it is safe to speak up and challenge the way things are done if they have concerns about quality remained unchanged at 57%.

In relation to this Mr Provan said there was ‘clearly still a lot of work to do to ensure that staff feel empowered to speak out.’

Only 27% of nurses and midwives agreed with the statement ‘staff are always consulted about changes at work’ and just over half felt they have sufficient opportunities to put forward new ideas or suggestions for improvement in their workplace.

Of those, only 40% were confident such ideas would be listened to.

Mr Provan concluded: ‘We have done a lot of work with health boards recently to ensure that staff do feel supported to speak out about concerns that they have, but this is yet to be felt by staff.

‘We are hopeful that next year’s staff survey will show progress in this area.

‘Their professionalism, skills and dedication are what keep our NHS going, but we know that we are at a crossroads and that things must change if we are to provide care and support fit for the future.’

Health secretary Shona Robison welcomed the increase in responses to the survey and pledged to support health boards further to improve staff experience.

She added: ‘I am extremely thankful for the hard work and dedication of our NHS staff. It is due to their on-going commitment that the NHS in Scotland is able to provide world-class care for patients.

'It is vital that we learn from these findings and I will be expecting all health boards to use their individual survey results to work with staff to bring in changes which will further improve staff experience.’

The full report is here