Mental Health Trust commended for taking a stand against bullying

A Mental Health Trust has been commended by the Healthcare Commission for the effort it has made in taking a stand against bullying in the workplace.

The Healthcare Commission conducted a review of Devon Partnership NHS Trust to determine whether staff were suffering from bullying and harassment and what actions were required to improve the situation for staff.

This was due to a recognition by the trust that staff morale was low and that some members of staff had experienced bullying and harassment.

However the Commission has commended the trust on the efforts it has made to tackle allegations of bullying and harassment and to improve staff morale and working relationships at the trust.

The review, conducted by NHS Partners on behalf of the Healthcare Commission, found that reports of bullying and harassment had reduced significantly from 2003 to the time of the report, from nearly one third of staff to around 10 per cent.

Since the review began, the trust has made progress in addressing the issues raised. It has developed a policy on acceptable behaviour, which will be implemented with the support of individual staff members and a programme of training.

Other initiatives to tackle bullying include:

* the introduction of a hotline for staff to raise issues directly with the chief executive;

* the establishment of a senior forum of staff bringing senior clinicians and managers together to influence decision making on the trust's objectives;

* the restructuring of the human resources department and the appointment of a director of workforce and organisational development.

Commenting on the report, chief executive, lain Tulley, said: 'We accept fully the Healthcare Commission's findings and acknowledge the seriousness of them. It is simply unacceptable that such a high proportion of our staff have felt bullied or harassed in some way over recent years.

We are striving to develop a more open and supportive organisation where people can have confidence about speaking up if they feel they have been treated inappropriately, and one where showing respect for fellow workers is a fundamental part of the way we all behave.

'I believe that we have made good progress towards this goal in the last year or so and it is reassuring that the Commission's findings support this view. However, it is important that we are not complacent and we will continue to monitor the situation very closely indeed.'

Copyright Community Psychiatric Nurses Association Mar 2006
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