Personnel flux and workplace anxiety: Personal and interpersonal consequences of understaffing in UK ultrasound departments

Stress, a reflective self and an internal locus of control: On the everyday clinical placement experiences of older undergraduate radiographers in the UK

INTRODUCTION

Extant evidence indicates that the stresses experienced by younger undergraduate radiographers and their older counterparts vary considerably. Much of this difference has, however, emerged from analyses of the academic component of a radiography degree whereas little work has focused to date upon the specific business of clinical placement. Given this, the research herein reports findings from a qualitative study of how older undergraduate radiography students in the UK assemble their stress and stressors around clinical placement.

METHODS

An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was employed. N = 6 older undergraduate students undergoing their final year placement were purposively recruited from a variety of hospitals. With full institutional ethical approval, a semi-structured interview was conducted with each participant.

RESULTS

Four superordinate themes emerged. These were: (1) Self-identity and perceived competence; (2) Understaffing, instability and affect; (3) Episodic experience and feeling 'thrown-in'; (4) Unpreparedness for the challenging patient. Critically, each theme describes an interaction between stressor, experience of stress and self.

CONCLUSION

While familiar stressors were apparent, the older participating students actively made sense of them in terms of their manageability. This provides a strong contrast with existing literature, which tends to imply a more externalised locus of control among (largely younger) students.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Stress in the NHS is a continuing issue and there is a clear rationale for further investigation to ascertain the level of clinical support available and to determine whether further improvements could assist students on clinical placement. Collaboration between academic institutions and clinical sites would allow open discussion around clinical stress experienced by radiography students, with locus of control a potential point of focus, fostering a proactive partnership approach to stress-management and identification of difficulties before they exacerbate.

Retention of radiographers: A qualitative exploration of factors influencing decisions to leave or remain within the NHS

INTRODUCTION

In many countries a widening imbalance exists between radiographer workforce supply and demand. Improving retention is a rapid method of workforce expansion which is gaining importance with policy makers and providers. To better understand the current leaver profile, this study aimed to identify why radiographers leave the NHS early, and what incentives are important in their decision to stay.

METHODS

A qualitative framework methodology used semi-structured telephone interviews to explore the perspectives of radiography managers, radiographers who have left the NHS, and those considering leaving. Purposive sampling ensured representation across radiography professional groups, geographical and organisational diversity, and stages of career.

RESULTS

Three over-arching themes were identified across all radiographer professional groups (n = 44): 1) Challenging working patterns and the impact on employee health and wellbeing; 2) Lack of flexibility in working terms and conditions; 3) Lack of timely career progression and access to CPD, and the need to feel valued. Radiographers were keen to express how they 'loved being a radiographer'; small concessions and changes to workplace culture might be the incentive to remain in radiography that some were clearly searching for. Manager participants recognised the need to offer greater flexibility in working patterns but this was challenging within financial and service delivery constraints.

CONCLUSIONS

While some influencing factors varied between radiographer professional groups, the three themes were consistent across participants. Failure to address these concerns will exacerbate the loss of experienced and highly trained staff from the NHS at a time when demand for services continues to rise.

IMPACT ON PRACTICE

Recommendations are presented related to three primary themes which will be a catalyst for sharing of best practice between radiology and radiotherapy centres.

Antecedents of Psychological Well-Being among Swedish Audit Firm Employees

The attractiveness of audit firms as employers appears to have decreased in recent years and the audit profession is currently experiencing high employee turnover. A shortage of personnel increases the risk of long-term stress and illness. This paper therefore proposes audit firm employees’ well-being as an important research topic and explores the antecedents of well-being of Swedish audit firm employees in comparison with those of other business professionals. Based on a nationwide survey of members of the Swedish association of business professionals, with a focus on psychological well-being (measured through General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12)), the study shows that the psychological well-being of the professionals in this study generally aligns with the results from similar studies in a Swedish context. However, the findings indicate that audit industry respondents have the lowest psychological well-being and that employer change, job satisfaction, and life satisfaction were the strongest antecedents of their psychological well-being.