It may be the body set up to help us when we are ill, and it may run health promotion campaigns, but it seems the NHS itself has a staff sickness rate 50 per cent higher than that of other employers!
According to independent and non-party think-tank ‘Reform’ it is time the NHS followed the example of private sector employers and addressed the problem properly. In a thought-provoking report Reform says:
“Without fanfare, UK employers are solving basic problems of modern healthcare that have defeated the Department of Health in recent years. Employers are providing fast access and health checks on demand. They are identifying poor mental health early and intervening quickly. They are motivating their staff towards better health. And they are engaging all members of the community, regardless of traditional health inequalities.
“Employers are doing this for a number of reasons. The result is increased revenues, reduced costs and lower absence. This success is particularly important in a recession, when greater output from experienced staff could be the difference between a firm’s success and failure.”
In terms of hard cash, Reform says that if the NHS could improve its sickness absence rate on the private sector model, it would save £1 billion a year – a useful sum given the current economic situation.
www.reform.co.uk
Visit the Fuse Learning website: www.fuselearning.co.uk
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