Posted 22 February 2021 - 16:37
Posted 22 February 2021 - 16:37
News
Give exhausted nurses time out on top of their annual leave
Pandemic recovery plans need to take account of nurses’ health and well-being
Pandemic recovery plans need to take account of nurses’ health and well-being
Nurses need funded ‘time out’ in addition to their annual leave so they can rest and recuperate from the impact of the pandemic, the RCN says.
The college is also calling for long-COVID to be recognised as an occupational disease – a chronic ailment caused by exposure to workplace hazards or activities – in nursing staff.
Nurses’ well-being and patient safety
In a new document setting out its key tests for moving forward from the pandemic, the RCN said it is ‘increasingly concerned’ about the health and well-being of members and their ability to provide current services safely.
The college has outlined eight staff recovery and patient safety principles to guide the health service and employers in planning the return to ‘normal’ service delivery.
The report comes as prime minister Boris Johnson was due to outline details of how lockdown is to be lifted in England.
Pandemic recovery: steps for health services to take
The RCN is calling for:
- A return to pre-COVID staffing levels, particularly in intensive care where nurse staffing ratios have beeb diluted in the pandemic
- Higher levels of personal protective equipment in all settings, specifically FFP3 face masks, as new strains of the virus emerge
- Consideration and reduction where possible of elevated COVID-19 risk faced by black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) nursing staff must be as services return
RELATED: Study of BAME populations’ COVID-19 risk
- Rest and recuperation for staff, including funded time out in addition to annual leave
- Occupational health services including ongoing counselling, bereavement and psychological trauma support
RELATED: COVID-19 psychological distress is higher in nurses than their colleagues
Exhaustion of nursing staff
RCN chief executive Dame Donna Kinnair said: ‘Nursing staff are still telling me the pressure on hospitals and other services are as bad as at any point last year.
‘Exhausted staff must be supported to recover, and pressure must abate further before we can enjoy the normality everybody craves.’
Take part in Nursing Standard’s well-being at work survey – deadline 28 February
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