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Showing results for tags 'Psychological safety'.
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Content ArticleTHE MIND FULL MEDIC PODCAST speaks with Professor Amy Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at the Harvard Business School. Amy is a world-renowned for her work in the area of psychological safety and team performance and author of The Fearless Organization. In this conversation, they discuss the origins of her research in healthcare teams and evolution over time.
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Content ArticleWith increasing concerns around the working conditions and psychological wellbeing of staff in the NHS, questions have been raised about how best to support staff wellbeing. Research is clear that wellbeing interventions that target the organisation and staff’s working environment work better than those which focus solely on supporting the individual person. Although it might seem simple to say: “we need to improve working conditions”, the challenge is whether this is possible and, if so, what this actually looks like in practice.
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Content ArticleThe NHS in England has largely relied on a human resources trilogy of policies, procedures and training to improve organisational culture. Evidence from four interventions using this paradigm—disciplinary action, bullying, whistleblowing and recruitment and career progression—confirms research findings that this approach, in isolation, was never likely to be effective. Roger Kline proposes an alternative methodology, elements of which are beginning to be adopted, which is more likely to be effective and to positively contribute to organisational cultures supporting inclusion, psychological safety, staff well-being, organisational effectiveness and patient care.
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News Article
Trust top team was ‘least cohesive I’ve ever joined’, says new CEO
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A review into how a reporting error came about has uncovered tension among an ambulance trust’s previous senior leaders, including that its new CEO felt it was ‘the least cohesive team I have ever joined’. Management consultancy Verita was commissioned by London Ambulance Service Trust to carry out a review of how it came to be misreporting category 1 (the most serious) response times. The report, published in board papers on Thursday, said it was caused by a contractor’s programming error going unnoticed and concluded it was “impossible to typify the events of August 2020 as other than an avoidable failure of governance and process”. Daniel Elkeles, who joined the trust as CEO in August 2021, told the review that when he joined the senior team it was “the least cohesive team I have ever joined” and said the organisation was not “psychologically safe” for those who wanted to speak up. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 26 May 2023 -
Content ArticleThe latest NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) data shows that it is still over twenty times more likely that a White Band 5 nurse will become a Director of Nursing compared to a Band 5 BME nurse. In this letter Roger Kline, Research Fellow at Middlesex University Business School, outlines his concerns about discrimination and bullying taking place within the NHS. Addressed to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Steve Barclay, the letter recalls the findings of the Messenger report commissioned by Mr Barclay's predecessor Sajid Javid, which found that “acceptance of discrimination, bullying, blame cultures and responsibility avoidance has almost become normalised in certain parts of the system, as evidenced by staff surveys and several publicised examples of poor practice." Referring to recent calls to reduce spending on equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), he outlines why patient care and frontline services cannot be detached from efforts to improve EDI. He argues that research strongly suggests how staff are treated (including whether they face discrimination) impacts on patient care, staff well-being and organisational effectiveness.
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Content Article
In this blog, Steve Turner reflects on why genuine patient safety whistleblowers are so frequently ignored, side-lined or victimised. Why staff don't speak out, why measures to change this have not worked and, in some cases, have exacerbated the problems. Steve concludes with optimism that new legislation going through Parliament offers a way forward from which everyone will benefit.- Posted
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Content ArticleThis BMJ Leader article from Roger Kline looks at how to tackle structural racism in the NHS, discussing psychological safety and inclusion, and the role leaders need to play.
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Content ArticleIf a manager approaches your desk, do you feel a sense of anxiety? If your team wants to challenge an idea or offer a different perspective, do they feel free to speak up? These are both examples of psychological safety - or a potential lack thereof - in the workplace. Organisations have focused heavily on mental health and well-being at work over the last few years, but many still lack an awareness of psychological safety, how it can impact your team and the consequences of an unsafe culture. This article looks at how you can measure and improve psychological safety.
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Content ArticleThis editorial in BMJ Quality & Safety argues that patients' perceptions of their safety should not be dismissed when measuring healthcare safety. The authors argue that a differentiation between ‘feeling safe’, as defined through patient experience, and ‘being safe’, as defined through observation and evaluation using clinical outcomes selected by quality experts, creates a power differential and dynamic that degrades the role and value of patient experiences as valid patient safety indicators.
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Content ArticleThe Fearless Organization by Amy C. Edmondson highlights the importance of psychological safety in the workplace. This article published by Conflux, pulls out some key take home messages from the book that can help in building an organisation where staff feel safe to speak up.
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Content Article
Psychosocial risk webinar series (FEFO, October 2022)
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Staff safety
This series of webinars by FEFO Consulting looks at how to identify psychosocial hazards at work and manage the associated risks. You can watch the four webinars on FEFO's YouTube channel: ISO 45003 vs Model code of practice – Getting started Change management – Managing psychosocial risks Mental fitness – Opening up conversations HR vs safety – Psychosocial ownership -
Content Article
The Psychologically informed policy and practice development (PIPP) project investigated current workplace concerns, barriers to change and opportunities for development and growth, and was a collaborative project run by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, UK Research and Innovation and the University of Bath. This document details specific evidence-based recommendations relating to four key areas identified as prioritised targets in emergency care workforce development: An environment to thrive in Cultivating a better culture A tailored pathway of care Enhanced leadership The recommendations are detailed, supported by evidence, existing guidelines and new empirical data, and are specific to the needs of the emergency care specialty. -
Content ArticleHow can leaders move from understanding to taking actions? Listen to the Dementia UK podcast on moral injury in nursing.
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Content ArticleThis video from the Irish Health Services Executive (HSE) tells the story of Barry, a paediatric nurse who made a medication error when treating a critically ill baby. Barry describes how the incident and the management response to it affected his mental health and confidence over a long period of time. He also describes how he had to fight to ensure the family were told the full story of what had happened, and the positive relationship he developed with the baby's mother as a result. The baby received the treatment they needed and recovered well.
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Content ArticlePsychological safety is the belief that you won’t be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns, or mistakes. This article by the Center for Creative Leadership explores why psychological safety is so important to foster in workplaces. It suggests eight steps toward creating more psychological safety at work and describes the four stages of psychological safety.
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Content ArticleThe Leapfrog Group is a non-profit watchdog organisation that serves as a voice for healthcare consumers in the US, using their collective influence to foster positive change in healthcare. It provides patient safety ratings for hospitals, grading them from A to E. This article in Becker's Hospital Review highlights the patient safety priorities for 2023 of eleven US hospitals that have consistently been awarded 'A' grades by Leapfrog. Key themes include a focus on reducing healthcare associated infections, increasing psychological safety for staff and improving communication between staff and patients.
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News Article
I worry we're killing people - ambulance dispatcher
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
Ambulance staff will take part in their second day of strike action this winter on Wednesday 11 January. Alongside paramedics, call-centre staff will walk out across England and Wales in the dispute over pay. These workers play a vital role, taking calls from the public and assigning ambulance crews. An ambulance dispatcher at the North West Ambulance Service, who wishes to stay anonymous, has described working amid the extreme pressures of this winter. They said, "The thought of going in and having to manage those calls just fills me with absolute dread. I have seen people leave the ambulance service - they have had enough. We are physically and mentally exhausted." Most frustrating, the dispatcher says, is the number of crews stuck outside hospital waiting to hand patients over to accident-and-emergency staff. In the last week of 2022, more than 40% of crews in England had waits of more than 30 minutes - it should take 15. Read full story Source: BBC News, 10 January 2023 -
News Article
Staff mental health support faces axe after national funding cut
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Mental health and wellbeing hubs for NHS and social care staff could be axed within months, as national funding for them is likely to be cut, HSJ has learned. NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care are understood to be close to ending ring-fenced national funding for the 41 hubs, which were set up in February 2021, at the peak of acute covid pressures and concern about the impact on staff. Sources told HSJ discussions were ongoing, but that it is likely integrated care systems would need to find funding themselves if they are to continue. Amid tight local finances, it is expected many will be wound down or closed. This is despite problems with low staff morale, high absence rates and with large numbers of experienced staff thought to be leaving the service. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 4 January 2022 -
Content ArticleIn this blog, Matthew Wain highlights how NHS organisations can support staff with patient safety investigations, and more generally, in the face of increased pressure. He looks at missed learning opportunities, psychological impact, and the support tools and programmes available for staff. Further reading: Patient Safety Learning's Staff Support Guide: a good practice resource following serious patient harm
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News ArticleTwo in three UK doctors are suffering “moral distress” caused by the enfeebled state of the NHS and the damage the cost of living crisis is inflicting on patients’ health, research has found. Large numbers are ending up psychologically damaged by feeling they cannot give patients the best possible care because of problems they cannot overcome, such as long waits for treatment or lack of drugs or the fact that poverty or bad housing is making them ill. A new survey found that 65% of doctors overall, including nearly four in five (78%) GPs and more than half (56%) of hospital doctors, have experienced “moral distress” as a direct result of situations they have encountered working in the NHS. Seeing patients with malnutrition or hypothermia, or stuck on trolleys in A&E corridors asking for help or forced to choose between heating their home or getting a prescription dispensed are among the events triggering their distress, medics said. “There’s barely a doctor at work in the NHS today who doesn’t see or experience this distress on a daily basis,” said Prof Philip Banfield, the leader of the British Medical Association. The NHS is “impossibly overstretched”, has thousands of vacancies for doctors and has a quarter fewer doctors a head of population than Germany, he added. “In practice that means we can almost never give the standard of care we would want, only ever the care we can manage. That takes its toll, as we see here,” Banfield said. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 28 December 2023
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EventThis one day masterclass will focus on improving patient safety through enhancing psychological safety and safety culture. It will look at effective ways to encourage health professionals to routinely embed high-quality clinical evidence into their everyday work. It will explore the characteristics of relatively successful behaviour change interventions. All Clinical Staff and Team Leads should attend. For further information and to book your place visit https://www.healthcareconferencesuk.co.uk/conferences-masterclasses/improving-psychological-safety-patient-safety or email aman@hc-uk.org.uk. hub members receive a 20% discount. Email info@pslhub.org for discount code.
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Event
Psychological safety - Dr Matt Hill
Patient Safety Learning posted an event in Community Calendar
Email rduh.qit@nhs,net to book a place. -
Content ArticleMoral injury is a specific kind of trauma that can happen when when people face situations that deeply violate their conscience or threaten their core values. This blog for Scientific American looks at the experience of ER doctor Torree McGowan when the Delta wave of Covid-19 hit the central Oregon region where she works. It examines the impact that moral injury has had on her mental health and her relationship with patients. The author looks at how Covid-19 hugely increased the incidence of moral injury as people in frontline roles faced ethically wrenching dilemmas every day. The growing realisation that moral injury is a separate diagnosis to other conditions such as PTSD and depression is resulting in a wider range of treatments and trauma therapies. Many of these treatments encourage people to face moral conflicts head-on rather than blotting them out or explaining them away, and they emphasize the importance of community support in long-term recovery.
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Content ArticleThe NHS Patient Safety Strategy aims to monitor and support the development of a strong patient safety culture within the NHS, creating an environment where individuals feel they will be treated fairly and compassionately if they speak up. In this publication, NHS England collates insights from focus groups held with NHS organisations that are rated by the Care Quality Commission as outstanding or good for its ‘Safe’ assessment domain. The insights reflect what they have done to support a patient safety culture within their organisations.
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Content ArticleTeamwork is critical in delivering quality medical care, and failures in team communication and coordination are substantial contributors to medical errors. This study in JAMA Internal Medicine aimed to determine the effectiveness of increased familiarity between medical resident doctors and nurses on team performance, psychological safety and communication. The authors found that increased familiarity between nurses and residents promoted rapid improvement of nursing perception of team relationships and, over time, led to higher team performance on complex cognitive tasks in medical simulations. They argue that medical systems should consider increasing team familiarity as a way to improve doctor-nursing teamwork and patient care.
