Bullying 'remains a concern' at NHS Highland
- Published
Some NHS Highland staff say they have seen no positive changes at the health board after a "culture of bullying" was exposed more than two years ago.
An independent review panel (IRP) set up as part of a "healing process" said employees were still reporting bullying behaviour up to last year.
The panel has made a series of recommendations to NHS Highland.
The health board said it accepted the IRP's recommendations and offered to apologise again to affected staff.
The IRP has published two reports on the progress of the healing process, which has been funded by the Scottish government.
The process offers current and former employees four options, which include "being heard", an apology and access to psychological therapies.
They can also opt to have their case heard by the IRP.
In the first of its two new reports, the panel said it had heard testimonies referring to an organisational culture in NHS Highland which was "centralist and dictatorial" with little delegated decision making.
This had left senior clinical leaders and their managers "feeling disenfranchised and disempowered".
'Inappropriate language'
The panel heard of pressure on staff to achieve targets, patient waiting times, service improvement and financial targets.
Employees said members of staff who felt under "considerable pressure" had bullied others to achieve results, and "ultimately this resulted in serious harm to the wellbeing of colleagues".
The IRP said: "We heard of examples of inappropriate language in meetings and other interactions."
Issues were reported by staff from across the NHS Highland area, including in Argyll and Bute where employees told of not being able to make decisions without the approval of "headquarters" in Inverness.
The panel said: "The IRP has now seen over 90 individuals who have accessed the healing process.
"The themes we reported in our first report are still being brought to us by staff members and the issues raised are not only historical but being experienced up to 2020.
"Worryingly, many individuals do not see that any positive changes have been made during 2020."
Action plan
NHS Highland said it was "actively focussing on the future, by learning from the past".
A spokeswoman said: "We are committed to improving the experience of NHS Highland, through our culture work and the personal commitment of our colleagues and leaders to work in a kind and compassionate way with one another.
"We will continue to invest in the resource and time needed to deliver this, which is embedded into our 2021-22 Strategy, Vision and Objectives, with our aspiration to be a "great place to work".
Dr Iain Kennedy, who was among GPs who made public bullying at NHS Highland, said progress had been slow in making improvements
A group of Highlands GPs exposed a "culture of bullying" at NHS Highland in September 2018.
An independent review by lawyer John Sturrock QC the following year suggested there were potentially hundreds of people who had experienced bullying at the health board.
In response, NHS Highland started work on an action plan to address problems identified by the review.
Last year, the Scottish government provided funding for the health board's healing process.
Dr Iain Kennedy, one of the GP whistleblowers, said it would take time for a cultural change at NHS Highland but added he was disappointed by how much progress had been made.
He said: "Clearly what people are telling the panel is bullying is still going on, which is a huge concern to the whistleblowing group and a huge concern to NHS Highland too."
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