Resilience of health-care workers in the UK; a cross-sectional survey

Abstract

BackgroundWorking for the UK National Health Service (NHS) requires working for organisations under financial pressures and frequent restructures, which can lead to anxiety over continuing employment and income. There are currently no studies to date that have examined the influence of personal resilience across all professions and demographics in the NHS. This study aims to quantify resilience within an NHS trust and explore the contribution of demographic variables of gender, age, years of service, pay grade, hours worked, job role, and division worked to the resilience response of employees. The study also explores the relationship between resilience levels and absence rates, as a marker for health and well-being amongst NHS staff.MethodsThis study consists of a cross-sectional on-line survey of staff employed in an NHS Trust. All trust employees were asked to complete a Resilience Scale (RS-25), and demographic questions including age, sex, length of service, NHS pay grade (banding), division, job role and number of hours worked per week. Trust level sickness absence rates were also collected during this period. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics, bivariate comparisons and chi-squared tests.ResultsData was gained from 845 employees; a significant association between gender and resilience found females scoring higher on the resilience scale; x2(5) =18.30, p < 0.05. A weak positive correlation between age and resilience found older employees displaying a higher level of resilience; r = 0.11, p <0.05. Results also suggest employees working between 18.75-37.5 hours a week have higher levels of resilience. Ancillary staff scored low on resilience compared to all other staff groups which showed moderate resilience. Clinical staff scored lower on resilience compared to both administrative staff and clinical staff with line management responsibilities. No correlations were found between absence rates and resilience.ConclusionThis study gives a snapshot of the resilience of employees in a NHS trust. It is the first of its kind to take into consideration all job roles, divisions and the banding system within a trust. The results also indicate that resilience levels may not be a mediating factor for the health and well-being of NHS staff.

What the COVID-19 pandemic tells us about the need to develop resilience in the nursing workforce

“…Support organisational resilience during a crisis » Good communication » Meaningful recognition and authentic leadership (Hart et al 2014) » True collaboration with no fragmentation of services (Stange 2009, Hart et al 2014, Giovanella 2016 » Supporting and providing opportunities for analytical thinking and problem-solving (Burnard and Bhamra 2011) » Support for joint goals and vision (Jeve et al 2015) » Effective decision-making throughout the organisation (Hart et al 2014) » Appropriate staffing, deployment of staff into crisis areas (Hart et al 2014) » Supporting a flexible workforce, for example by minimising undesirable shifts and giving people time off even at short notice when workload is lighter (Miller and Xiao 2007) » Provision of workplace buffers (Matheson et al 2016) » Supportive well-being strategies (Sull et al 2015) Develop personal resilience » Practice of healthy coping strategies (Hudgins 2016) » Encouraging hopefulness (Hart et al 2014) » Using positive language and supporting self-efficacy (Hudgins 2016) » Supporting positive emotions (Bonanno 2004) » Development of a mentoring relationship (Jackson et al 2007) » Developing strong social support (Tsai et al 2012, Kalahar-Levering 2019 » Journal writing and self-reflection to enhance emotional insight (Giordano 1997)…”

Association between demographics and resilience – a cross‐sectional study among nurses in Singapore

“…On the contrary, in a larger study of healthcare employees in the United Kingdom, female employees, those who were older and those working from 18.75 to 37.5 h a week (compared to those working less than 18.75 h), reported higher resilience level (Sull et al. ). Given different demographic variables were measured across studies coupled with the use of different scales to measure resilience, it was challenging to compare results across studies.…”

Resilience and workplace stress in Australian and New Zealand obstetrics and gynaecology trainees: A cross‐sectional survey

“…An emerging concept known to counteract some of these external stressors is that of resilience . Defined as ‘the ability to successfully adapt, maintain competent functioning and bounce back from adversity and major life stressors’, resilience has been shown to correlate with one’s ability to cope with stress, multitasking demands and organisational challenges; in addition to enhanced employee health, job performance, work ability, work engagement and career success . High resilience has been associated with reduced sick leave, and facilitated healthy coping with trauma .…”