It is shocking to see the extent of nurses’ burnout in hospitals, according to new surveys. Yet, the findings are not surprising considering how the situation in the heath service is deteriorating. Those feeling the pulse of the service must have been expecting this to happen any time but politicians had other things in mind. If they too did see the writing on the wall, they have certainly not been acting fast enough to see to the problems.
The biggest irony, perhaps, is that, while the country still boasts that its hospitals provide a top quality service, the situation on the ground exposes the price.
It is, of course, logical that if key players, like nurses, are not in a position to give their best, the service can never be top quality. It is, therefore, essential to start facing facts first and admit that the country badly needs to pull up its socks.
A European health consumer index highlighting a significant deterioration in the health service last year ought to have whipped up enough concern to push the administration into taking corrective action. Clearly, any action taken has been far from enough. Indeed, problems continued to multiply, even under the new Labour administration, which before the election was supposed to have had all the answers to the problems at the general hospital.
Studies by a clinical psychologist show that the majority of nurses are facing burnout, with as many as 90 per cent of more than 200 interviewed in three hospitals reporting high levels of depersonalisation.
Nursing is not an ordinary job; it is a vocation, requiring compassion and dedication. When nurses find that staff restrictions stop them from exercising their profession as they should, they naturally get frustrated.
The surveys have highlighted a very high sense of unfeeling and impersonal response towards patients, care treatment and instructions from superiors. According to Michael Galea, the clinical psychologist who carried out the research, the way forward is through the adoption of a six-step method: good nurse-to-patient ratio; perception of self-control at work; job-related rewards; social support at work; fairness on the job; and values.
The nurses’ union often gives the impression it is prone to act rashly when it comes against sudden problems or when it is in dispute with the administration. In fact, it really needs to weigh the implications of its public statements and not overreact.
However, it is right in raising the issue over staff shortages because this, and lack of ward space, make up two of the most pressing concerns. It is most distressing, for instance, that nurses at the ITU department have to look after four patients rather than one. If this is the case, urgent action would need to be taken to correct the situation. The union recently indicated other places where there is staff shortage. Successive administrations have introduced new services without having the required infrastructure and manpower in place. How can the ITU department, a critical unit in the hospital, be understaffed?
Replacing the health minister is clearly not enough. Greater political and administrative determination ought to be shown to get to grips with the problems that, sadly, are dragging the service down.
If the new parliamentary health secretary, Chris Fearne, acts on his commitment to reduce stress levels and raise the nurses’ job satisfaction, a good start would have been made towards bringing about an improvement in the health service.