Asked by Baroness Thornton To ask Her Majesty’s Government what
steps the Department of Health and Social Care and the National
Health Service are taking to support the mental health of the NHS
workforce in England. Baroness Manzoor (Con) My Lords, the NHS
workforce is our greatest asset...Request free trial
Asked by
-
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps the Department
of Health and Social Care and the National Health Service
are taking to support the mental health of the NHS
workforce in England.
-
My Lords, the NHS workforce is our greatest asset and
their mental health is very important. Good mental health
enables fulfilling careers and better care for patients.
Through our NHS health and well-being programmes, the
department is committed to ensuring that staff mental
illness is prevented wherever possible and that staff are
supported in self-managing their mental health. When
needed, staff are offered quick access to psychological
interventions.
-
I thank the Minister for that Answer. As noble Lords will
be aware, this is Mental Health Awareness Week, and the
Mental Health Foundation is focusing particularly on
stress at work. Coming at the end of the winter crisis,
which has put all NHS staff and care workers under
pressure, and given the pressures put on staff by 100,000
posts in the NHS being unfilled—that is an NHS
Improvement figure—I would like to ask the Minister two
questions. First, will the Government seek to assess the
stress put on NHS staff by the winter crisis when they
eventually tell us the financial and patient price that
has been paid over the winter period? Secondly, is the
Minister aware of the irony that 75% of mental health
workers have been stressed at least once a week due to
staff turnover leaving them under extra pressure?
-
My Lords, the Government are committed to putting record
levels of funding into mental health. We are totally
committed to improving the health and well-being of our
staff and to seeing mental health services improve on the
ground. As the noble Baroness, Lady Thornton, will know,
employers are also being supported by the first-ever
common framework for NHS staff health and well-being.
This was launched this week and includes mental health
prevention, self-management and access to psychological
therapies. She asked what we are doing about stress. As
she will be aware, following the Boorman review, the NHS
staff sickness absence rate reduced to 4.13% for the year
to December 2017. However, I understand that more needs
to be done in this area.
-
My Lords, what discussions are the Government having with
management and senior management at NHS England about
front-line workers such as ambulance staff and those
working in emergency and medicine? They are under
extraordinary pressure, sometimes do not even have time
for a cup of tea, and deal with major trauma after major
trauma and large numbers of distressed people, yet
sometimes feel that their own management will not back
them up if something goes wrong.
-
There is significant pressure on front-line staff. The
noble Baroness has not mentioned that there are also
issues around harassment, bullying and violence. The
Government are doing a significant amount through their
frameworks to help and support these front-line staff.
Certainly, NHS Improvement is looking to incentivise
employers to do more.
-
My Lords, does the Minister agree that the mental health
of all NHS staff, and in particular GPs, would be greatly
enhanced if the general public would keep their
appointments? I understand that some 20% to 30% of
appointments are missed. Does the Minister have any
thoughts as to how this dreadful problem may be
addressed?
-
My noble friend raises an important point. It is
important that patients attempt to keep their
appointments, but of course there are sometimes reasons
that one cannot. To come back to the workforce and the
mental health of GPs, we are setting up an NHS helpline
for GPs themselves to help and support them in caring for
their health and well-being.
-
My Lords, what assessment have Her Majesty’s Government
made of the impact and contribution that NHS chaplains
make to the mental health of their colleagues?
-
The right reverend Prelate makes a good point. I know
from my own experience of working in the NHS that
chaplains play a vital and key role in helping support
not only patients but staff when they are doing their
duties and need that support.
-
My Lords, first, I declare an interest. On 12 September,
I raised an issue in relation to GPs and the requirement
of insurance for their absence on sickness grounds, and
the gross discrimination of rogue insurers against those
with mental ill-health as opposed to physical
disabilities. Will the Minister take another look at the
way the ombudsman’s service works? Discrimination is no
longer monitored by the regulator, which says that
because GPs now employ more than 10 people, an individual
case cannot be taken through the ombudsman’s service.
-
The issue of discrimination and insurance is an important
one. I do not have the facts and figures at hand to
answer the noble Lord’s question, but I will endeavour to
write to him to tell him what we are doing in this area.
-
My Lords, will the Minister say how the Government intend
to respond to the report from the Royal College of
Physicians on work and well-being in the NHS, which
recommended that financial incentives should be included
in NHS contracts to promote staff mental health and
well-being?
-
That is an interesting question. As I have alluded to,
NHS Improvement already has a programme to incentivise
employers to ensure that they have good workplace
strategies in place for well-being and mental health. It
is looking to roll that out even further.
-
My Lords, I am sure the Minister recognises that there is
good evidence to show that an efficient occupational
health service, run by any major organisation, that is
confidential and provides good counselling reduces stress
and mental ill-health in its workforce. Does she agree
that such a service should be available in every major
hospital trust?
-
Absolutely. Staff survey evidence shows that improving
staff health and well-being leads to higher staff
engagement, better staff retention and better patient
care. I totally agree with the noble Lord.
|
