Fifth of ethnic minority staff abused, says NHS

Ed Garrett, chief executive of the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, said there was "uncomfortable reading" in the report

One in five ethnic minority staff have been harassed, bullied or abused by colleagues, according to a report from a regional NHS team.

Staff data, gathered by the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board (ICB), suggested that 22% of ethnic minority staff had those experiences.

This compared with 13% of white staff members.

Dr Ed Garratt, the ICB's chief executive, said although there was "really good progress" in some areas, there were parts which made for "uncomfortable" reading.

Meanwhile, 17% of ethnic minority staff taking part in the survey said they had been harassed, bullied or abused by patients - up from 13% the year before.

However, 11% of ethnic minority staff experienced discrimination at work from a manager, team leader, or colleagues during the year ending in March, which represented a drop compared with 17% the previous year.

The report said the ICB would carefully monitor the responses of this year's survey and would ensure both staff and the public were aware of its zero-tolerance policy.

The survey also indicated that the gap between white and ethnic minority applicants being shortlisted for jobs had narrowed significantly.

Disabled staff reported less harassment from managers and felt less pressured to work while unwell, an ICB spokesperson added.

Amanda Lyes, the executive director of workforce and people at the ICB, said the board should be proud of its improvements, but more work was needed.

"We have had some positive outcomes, we acknowledge there is more we need to be doing, and we are not complacent on that," she said.