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

Sull, Andeep, Harland, Nicholas and Moore, Andrew (2015) Resilience of health-care workers in the UK; a cross-sectional survey. Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 10 (1). ISSN 1745-6673

Item Type: Article

Abstract

Background
Working 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.

Methods
This 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.

Results
Data was gained from 845 employees; a significant association between gender and resilience found females scoring higher on the resilience scale; x 2(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.

Conclusion
This 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.

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More Information

Depositing User: Nicholas Harland

Identifiers

Item ID: 12391
Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12995-015-0061-x
ISSN: 1745-6673
URI: http://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/id/eprint/12391
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12995-015-0061-x

Users with ORCIDS

ORCID for Nicholas Harland: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-3402-3457

Catalogue record

Date Deposited: 06 Aug 2020 15:50
Last Modified: 30 Sep 2020 10:49

Contributors

Author: Nicholas Harland ORCID iD
Author: Andeep Sull
Author: Andrew Moore

University Divisions

Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing > School of Nursing and Health Sciences

Subjects

Psychology > Social Psychology

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