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Showing results for tags 'Stress'.
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Content ArticleCumulative stress, compassion fatigue and trauma due to experiences with patient safety incidents impact the mental wellness of our healthcare providers. These factors contribute to inadvertent patient care errors, mental health issues and attrition which compromise patient safety. A peer support programme not only simply helps healthcare workers with their experiences with patient safety incidents but also improves the system and help make patient care safe. The Creating a Safe Space: Addressing the Psychological Safety of Healthcare Workers manuscript and the Canadian Peer Support Network are intended to assist healthcare organisations create peer-to-peer support programmes (PSPs) to improve the emotional well-being of healthcare workers and allow them to provide the best and safest care to their patients.
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Content ArticleEverybody responds differently to the stresses and strains of modern life. We all need and, to a degree, thrive on pressure: it gives us energy, helps with performance and inspires confidence. But excessive pressure can lead to stress. Stress may become a problem when someone feels they don’t have the resources to cope with the demands placed upon them. Harmful levels of stress can lead to a mental health condition such as anxiety or depression. This booklet from the Devon Partnership NHS Trust aims to give you some very practical information and guidance – and provides spaces for you to make notes so you can make it work for you.
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Content ArticleDrawing on research, best practice guidelines and expert clinical opinions, the COVID Trauma Response Working Group has created rapid guidance for planners putting in place psychological support for staff in the early stages of dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. The King's Fund has developed this graphic as a quick reference version of the detailed guidance available on the traumagroup.org website.
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Content Article
Looking after each other in times of change
Sally Howard posted an article in Blogs
In her latest blog, Sally Howard, talks about our changing world, why transitions are so difficult and what we can do to look after each other along the way.- Posted
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Content ArticleIn this paper published in JAMA Network Open, Lai et al., looked at what factors are associated with mental health outcomes among healthcare workers in China who are treating patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). In this cross-sectional study of 1257 healthcare workers in 34 hospitals equipped with fever clinics or wards for patients with COVID-19 in multiple regions of China, a considerable proportion of them reported experiencing symptoms of depression, anxiety, insomnia and distress. These findings suggest that, among Chinese healthcare workers exposed to COVID-19, women, nurses, those in Wuhan, and front-line health care workers have a high risk of developing unfavourable mental health outcomes and may need psychological support or interventions.
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Content ArticleThis blog was intended to give insights into what it is like working during this crisis on the frontline. I was going to explain what I see day to day, the stress that healthcare workers are under, the situation with personal protective equipment (PPE), the pressure on intensive care unit (ICU) beds and the ward. But unfortunately it's not that simple...
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News ArticleJust 1 in 4 UK GPs are satisfied with time they are able to spend with patients – appointment times are among the shortest of 11 countries surveyed. A report published today by the Health Foundation paints a picture of high stress and low satisfaction with workload among UK GPs. The report is an analysis of an international survey of GPs from 11 high-income countries, including 1,001 UK GPs, undertaken by the Commonwealth Fund in 2019. Among 11 high-income countries included in the study, only France has lower levels of overall satisfaction with practising medicine, and only Sweden reported higher levels of stress. Over half of UK GPs (60%) say they find their job 'extremely' or 'very' stressful, and almost half (49%) plan to reduce their weekly hours in the next three years. UK GPs also reported significantly shorter appointment lengths than their international colleagues. The average length of a GP appointment in the UK is 11 minutes, compared with a 19 minute average appointment for GP and primary care physicians in the other countries surveyed. Dr Rebecca Fisher, one of the Health Foundation report's authors and a practising GP, says: "These findings illustrate the pressures faced by general practice, and the strain that GPs are under. Right now the health system is in unprecedented territory and mobilising to meet the challenge of Covid-19. This survey shows that over the long term we need concerted action to stabilise general practice. Despite performing strongly in some aspects of care, many GPs consider that appointments are simply too short to fully meet the needs of patients. Too many GPs are highly stressed and overburdened – to the point of wanting to leave the profession altogether." Read full story Source: The Health Foundation, 5 March 2020
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Content Article
Association for Anaesthetists: Tips for night shifts
Claire Cox posted an article in Motivating staff
The Association for Anaesthetists have produced some 'top tips' for night shift workers. What tips do you have to keep you feeling well overnight? -
Content ArticleKirkland Medical Center is an outpatient clinic in the Virginia Mason Health System in the USA. Kirkland uses an innovative, system-wide management method to improve patient care and safety by eliminating waste and inefficiencies. This management method is used to streamline repetitive aspects of care delivery, standardise clinical roles and engage in continuous learning activities. This case study highlights key features of Kirkland Medical Center’s management approach that have led to improved rates of employee satisfaction, engagement, and overall well-being. Two pillars play a central role in improving well-being: (1) workflow optimisation and (2) a culture of collegiality, respect, and innovation.
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AWARE – Well-being resources
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Good practice
A suite of resources designed to promote well-being among US residents, fellows, faculty members, and others has been created by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. This initial set of AWARE resources focuses on individual strategies for cognitive skill building, and includes a video workshop, podcasts, and the ACGME AWARE app. -
Content ArticleThis article from Kemper et al., published in Pediatrics, looks at the national epidemiology of burnout in pediatric residents in the USA. The authors found that the majority of the residents surveyed met burnout criteria. Several identified factors (e.g., stress, sleepiness, medical errors, empathy, CCC, and self-compassion) suggest targets for interventions to reduce burnout in future studies.
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News Article
Harrowing stories of burned out NHS doctors bullied and broken
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Dedicated to caring for the sick and vulnerable, junior doctors should expect to be supported and valued as they carry out their vital work. However, hundreds have revealed they are subjected to bullying and harassment at overstretched hospitals that have been plunged into a staffing crisis by a decade of savage health cuts. A Mirror investigation uncovered harrowing stories of young medics being denied drinking water during gruelling shifts, working for 15 hours on their feet non-stop and of uncaring managers tearing into them for breaking down in tears over the deaths of patients. One was even accused of “stealing” surgical scrubs she took to wear after suffering a miscarriage at work. The distraught woman finished her shift wearing blood-soaked trousers, instead of going home to rest. Doctors are now quitting in their droves, leaving those left struggling to cope with a growing workload. The Mirror investigation reveals the reality of working for an NHS which has been subject to a record funding squeeze and is 8,000 medics short. Health chiefs vowed to investigate the Mirror’s evidence from 602 testimonials submitted to the lobbying group Doctors Association UK. Chairman Dr Rinesh Parmar said: “These heartbreaking stories from across the country show the extent of bullying and harassment that frontline doctors face whilst working to care for patients". Read full story Source: The Mirror, 12 February 2020 -
Community Post*Trigger warning. This post includes personal gynaecological experiences of a traumatic nature. What is your experience of having a hysteroscopy? We would like to hear - good or bad so that we can help campaign for safer, harm free care. You can read Patient Safety Learning's blog about improving hysteroscopy safety here. You'll need to be a hub member to comment below, it's quick and easy to do. You can sign up here.
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Content ArticleThis Clinical Knowledge Summary (CKS) topic is based on the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) post-traumatic stress disorder guideline. This CKS topic covers the management of children and adults with post-traumatic stress disorder in primary care. It does not cover the management of post-traumatic stress disorder in secondary care; or the management of anxiety, depression, drug or alcohol misuse, dissociative disorders, or adjustment disorders.
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Suicide amongst anaesthetists 2019
Claire Cox posted an article in Staff safety
Anaesthetists are thought to be at increased risk of suicide amongst the medical profession. The aims of the following guidelines written by the Association of Anaesthetists are: increase awareness of suicide and associated vulnerabilities, risk factors and precipitants; to emphasise safe ways to respond to individuals in distress, both for them and for colleagues working alongside them; and to support individuals, departments and organisations in coping with a suicide. -
Content ArticleSamantha Batt-Rawden, Co-founder of the The Doctors' Association UK, discusses the struggles of a junior doctor and how changes in the NHS over the last 14 years has made it so much harder to do an already hard job. In this article published in the Metro, she says "that the combination of spiralling workloads and a decimation of morale and camaraderie has been toxic for the profession." Last year, 55% of UK doctors met the criteria for burnout and ‘emotional exhaustion’, with one in five resorting to the use of drugs or alcohol as a ‘coping strategy’. It’s hardly surprising that we are haemorrhaging doctors out of the profession, and it’s only getting worse. So, how do we fix this? Sally suggests that we need to treat staff like human beings if we are going to have any hope of stemming the exodus of clinicians. It’s as simple as restoring some on-call rooms so we can get our heads down, and stop crashing our cars on the way home. Or it’s as basic as ensuring that junior doctors have leave for our own weddings. Honestly, at this stage, just letting us have access to now-outlawed NHS coffee overnight would be a significant morale boost.
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Content ArticleHow are trauma-informed approaches being implemented by public services – and what are the barriers to embedding the approach more widely? Produced jointly by the Centre for Mental Health and the Agenda, the alliance for women and girls at risk, this reports explores how trauma-informed approaches are being implemented by public services including women’s centres, prisons and mental health services. Evidence has shown that there are strong links between traumatic experiences and poor mental health. The need for public services to be trauma-informed has been repeatedly demonstrated. A sense of safety summarises the findings of interviews and site visits to a range of public services for women, including substance misuse, homelessness, mental health, the criminal justice system, and domestic and sexual abuse and exploitation. It found that services taking a holistic approach to supporting women’s needs were best able to make the change to becoming trauma-informed. However, many organisations faced barriers including short-term and fragile funding.
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Content ArticleThis book is an account of the life of a surgeon: what it is like to cut into people's bodies and the life and death decisions that have to be made.
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News Article
GP shortages cause 'unacceptable' patient waits
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Family doctors are under intense pressure and general practice is running on empty, warns the Royal College of GPs (RCGP). It says severe staff shortages are causing "unacceptable" delays for patients in England. In a letter to Health Secretary Matt Hancock, its chairman says ministers must take urgent action to deal with the lack of GPs. The government said it had recruited a "record number" of GP trainees. Ministers are committed to recruiting 6,000 more GPs in England by 2025. Prof Martin Marshall, who took over as RCGP chairman in November, says GPs are struggling with an escalating workload, which is causing many to burn out and leave the profession. Dr Andrew Dharman, who works at the The Avenue surgery in Ealing, said the stress has got worse because of the enormous workload placed on GPs. He said: "Sometimes it feels like you're drowning. You know you're trying to stay afloat and on top of all the workload. And you're trying to make sure you're providing the kind of care that you envisage when you go to medical school." "You feel frustrated sometimes that you can't necessarily do that because of the amount of work and patients." Read full story Source: BBC News, 9 January 2020 -
Content ArticleDisruptive and unprofessional behaviours occur frequently in healthcare and adversely affect patient care and healthcare worker job satisfaction. These behaviours have rarely been evaluated at a work setting level, nor do we fully understand how disruptive behaviours are associated with important metrics such as teamwork and safety climate, work-life balance, burnout and depression.
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Content Article
Civility Saves Lives
PatientSafetyLearning Team posted an article in Good practice
Civility Saves Lives are a collective voice for the importance of respect, professional courtesy and valuing each other. They aim to raise awareness of the negative impact that rudeness (incivility) can have in healthcare, so that we can understand the impact of our behaviours. Their goal is to disseminate the science of the impact of incivility in healthcare. They also strive to research and collaborate on data about the impact of incivility. -
Content ArticleInformation overload can be defined as a difficulty a person can have in comprehending issue and making judgments that are caused by the presence of too much information. Information overload occurs when the amount of input to a system surpasses its processing capability. Decision-makers have a limited cognitive processing ability. Consequently, when information overload happens, it is possible that a decline in decision quality will take place. Decision-makers, such as medical consultants, have fairly limited cognitive processing capacity. Consequently, when information overload occurs, it is likely that a reduction in decision quality will occur. The aim of this study, originally published by the Journal of Biosciences and Medicines, is to assess the impact of information overload on medical consultants’ life, its causes, and potential ways to deal with it.
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Content ArticleWe tend to think of burnout as an individual problem, solvable by “learning to say no,” more yoga, better breathing techniques, practicing resilience — the self-help list goes on. But evidence is mounting that applying personal, band-aid solutions to an epic and rapidly evolving workplace phenomenon may be harming, not helping, the battle. With “burnout” now officially recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO), the responsibility for managing it has shifted away from the individual and towards the organisation.
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Content Article
Re-leveling: how stories ground us (December 2019)
Claire Cox posted an article in Blogs and vlogs
This short blog by an anonymous writer discusses making mistakes. What does it feel like to make a mistake and more so, whats it like admitting it? -
Content ArticleIn this article in The Guardian, a junior doctor tells us how a small act of kindness from her patient kept her going.
