Our staff work hard to deliver the best possible palliative care and support to our patients and improve efficiency.
The dedication and skill of our workforce are what make our hospice and community services successful, and we strive to recruit the very best people to join our committed team.
The Hospice is committed to involving the workforce in decision-making, engaging them in key developments, and keeping them informed of change across the organisation. We work hard to ensure that all staff and volunteers are aware of both internal and external developments that may affect the organisation, such as financial pressures and in the development of our future strategy.
We place great importance on staff and volunteer engagement as there is a positive correlation between this and staff motivation, commitment, involvement in change and ultimately a positive impact on the quality of our patient care. In 2019/20, we were rated highly in both the Investor in People staff survey, achieving Silver level Investor in People accreditation, and in the Healthy Working Lives project, achieving a Bronze level award.
We know that patient and staff experience are intrinsically linked and that positive staff engagement leads to increased satisfaction from our patients and their families. We measure our success in terms of staff engagement and creating a good work environment through an annual survey and feedback received through other communication and engagement sessions including a twice yearly staff forum held by the Chief Executive, regular email bulletins to all staff, and online facilities where staff can find policies, guidance and online tools.
The Hospice’s corporate induction programme is a valuable source of information for new recruits.
Our team leaders hold regular face-to-face briefings on both operational and management issues, helping to engage staff. All staff are encouraged to voice opinions, suggest improvements and share ideas.
The Hospice offers leadership and development opportunities at all levels, including the creation of higher level nursing auxiliary posts and education, access to formal and on the job training, a leadership course for managers and a range of staff benefits and specific initiatives which aim to create a positive culture where all staff feel valued and receive the support they need.