Making progress on staff satisfaction

The need to make £20 billion in savings over the next three to five years has challenged many employers in the NHS. There is fear surrounding the number of redundancies which may need to be made and an increase in pressure to increase quality and productivity with fewer funds. Trust Boards will need to act quickly and decisively if they are to prevent a plummet in morale resulting in further cuts in productivity. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has recently published the results of its annual staff satisfaction survey, undertaken between September and December 2010. The surprising results may provide encouragement and some useful pointers for Trust Board members. Previous cuts in funding have focussed efforts on reducing frontline services, cutting training and allowing waiting lists to lengthen.1 Now, more than ever, it is expected that efficiencies can be delivered while maintaining quality services.

NHS staff survey

Analysis of research commissioned by the Workforce Directorate found the relationship between staff satisfaction and the quality of treatment is becoming stronger. Thus, it becomes critical that Trust Boards take the results of the NHS staff survey seriously, as part of their action plans for coping with fewer funds to deliver services. The staff survey was responded to by 54% of those 306,000 staff who were invited to take part. It is the eighth annual NHS staff survey, and has been built around elements of the NHS Constitution. Four pledges in the NHS Constitution focus on what staff should expect from NHS employers, which are part of the commitment of the NHS to provide high quality working environments for staff: