New Recommendations for Improving NHS Staff Health Accepted
Monday, December 7th, 2009NHS workers who are responsible for the health of the general public in the
Health Secretary Andy Burnham recently confirmed that recommendations made in a report commissioned by the Government have been accepted fully. These recommendations include undertaking proactive measures to prevent the incidence of ill health and to create accountability for health of employees within the structure of the NHS.
The recommendations that have been accepted for implementation were outlined in a report presented by Dr Steve Boorman and commissioned by the Department of Health. Once the measures suggested are implemented and are in use, about 3.4 million working days will be saved, it is estimated. This will mean a saving of £555 million annually. These funds will be reinvested into the NHS to provide better health care to the public and to reduce costs of prohibitively expensive treatments, which will in effect translate into cost benefits for taxpayers.
The recommendations include proactive measures to prevent the incidence of musculoskeletal disorders and to help and enable easy return to work for sufferers of such problems. The report suggests implementing a prevention-oriented approach in all NHS centres. Such measures and their implementation must be the responsibility of senior staff. The annual performance assessment of the NHS should be based on how well the measures have been implemented.
Given that the NHS is an organisation that cares for the health of millions across the country, it is necessary for the Government to show its support for the staff here. It is hoped that these recommendations will translate into effective improvements for NHS staff. The Department of Health has earmarked funds to the tune of £6.5m to deploy the measures that will in effect facilitate the implementation of these recommendations.
All organisations need to make appropriate efforts to protect the well-being of staff, Workplace Law provide courses by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, which impart training to managers to successfully manage appropriate policies and procedures and improve upon management skills to help tackle stress in the workplace.
