Nearly 40% of NHS staff sick with stress, survey finds
One in three workers has witnessed ‘potentially harmful errors’ as pressure takes its toll
The number of NHS staff suffering work-related stress is on the rise, with 38.4% feeling physically unwell as a result over the past year, compared with 36.7% in 2016, new figures show.
And the pressure appears to be taking its toll, with almost a third of staff (29%) reporting having witnessed “potentially harmful errors, near misses or incidents within the last month”, according to NHS England’s latest annual staff survey.
The survey was sent to a total of 1.1 million NHS England employees, of whom 487,227 responsed. The resulting report, published today, is the largest workforce survey in the world.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The 2017 survey also found that 52.9% of staff had gone into work despite feeling unwell over the last three months, because they felt under pressure either from their manager, colleagues or themselves.
Just over 15% of staff say they experienced physical violence from patients, relatives or the public over the past year, and 28% experienced harassment, bullying or abuse.
Less than a third of all NHS workers say they were satisfied with their salaries last year, while more than 58% say they worked additional unpaid hours.
Responding to the survey results, Labour’s shadow health minister, Justin Madders, said: “The NHS Staff Survey shows yet again the extent to which this government has taken NHS staff for granted.
“Ministers need to do much more to give the brilliant staff of the NHS the support and respect they deserve. The chronic understaffing of our overstretched NHS is putting patients and their families at risk and needs urgent action from government.”
Infographic by www.statista.com for TheWeek.co.uk
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - December 22, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - the long and short of it, trigger finger, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 hilariously spirited cartoons about the spirit of Christmas
Cartoons Artists take on excuses, pardons, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Inside the house of Assad
The Explainer Bashar al-Assad and his father, Hafez, ruled Syria for more than half a century but how did one family achieve and maintain power?
By The Week UK Published
-
Should blood donors be paid?
The Explainer Financial rewards would help fill NHS shortfall but bring risk of contamination and exploitation, WHO warns
By The Week UK Published
-
UK gynaecological care crisis: why thousands of women are left in pain
The Explainer Waiting times have tripled over the past decade thanks to lack of prioritisation or funding for women's health
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
A 'transformative' gene therapy for haemophilia B
The Explainer Costly treatment that could be 'truly life-changing' for patients with rare blood disorder gets funding boost
By Julia O'Driscoll, The Week UK Published
-
Infected blood scandal: will justice be served?
Today's Big Question Government apologises for 'decades-long moral failure' and promises £10bn compensation but true accountability may take far longer
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Immunotherapy and hay fever
The Explainer Research shows that the treatment could provide significant relief from symptoms for many hay fever sufferers
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
The pros and cons of universal health care
Pros and Cons A medical system that serves everyone comes with its own costs, and they're not only financial
By Rebecca Messina, The Week UK Last updated
-
Martha's Rule: patients given right to urgent second opinion
The Explainer Hospitals in England will launch new scheme that will allow access to a rapid treatment review
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
The contaminated blood scandal
The Explainer Widely regarded as the worst treatment disaster in the history of the NHS, the public inquiry is due to publish its report in May
By The Week UK Published