Today’s NHS faces profound changes and challenges. Roles and clinical procedures, the way care is delivered in and out of hospital, the way services are configured, undergo changes almost daily. In part these are designed to meet growing patient demands and expectations; they also reflect profound changes in medical, nursing and therapeutic procedures. And as the public spending climate changes, the pressures to deliver more with less will inevitably increase.
NHS organisations and their staff, need all the help they can get to meet the whirlwind of change. In the experience of many hospitals and trusts and staff representatives, one key tool is developing positive and productive relationships with staff organisations - social partnership.
Chief executives, managers and staff representatives who have adopted and implemented partnership approaches believe the business case for partnership is unanswerable. With partnership, all parts of an organisation can come together to meet challenges, and pull together to meet agreed goals.
Benefits of partership working for the NHS
The benefits of social partnership working are many and wide reaching, below are some of specific relevance to the NHS.
Better quality services for patients
- At Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust staff side and management worked in partnership to develop a ‘together we can’ culture, developing a partnership structure, which extends from corporate level right into each service.
Better prepared to meet financial challenges in the current economic climate
- Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre NHS Foundation Trust won the HPMA partnership award in 2008 (sponsored and judged by SPF) for embedding partnership working and making significant improvements in its’ finances, staff morale and patient care.
Better staff morale and motivation
- Knowsley PCTs experience of partnership working is that, if it is embedded at all levels within an organisation, it can play a key role in encouraging better staff morale, motivation and help to maintain confidence in the workforce in difficult times.
Increased productivity
- Find out how partnership working was integral to the improving productivity review carried out by South Downs Health NHS Trust.
- Wolverhampton City PCT has embedded partnership working into its culture and how this was a key success factor in the trust’s Productivity Improvement Programme.
Improved employee relations
Ability to manage change effectively
- London Ambulance Service demonstrates how partnership working has enabled it to deal with poor operating systems and working practices, as well as improve pay for front-line staff, deal with staff safety concerns and replace outdated IT and other equipment.
Increased innovation through joint problem solving
- Coventry Teaching Primary Care Trust: increased innovation through joint problem solving. Staff and management working together, in partnership, can help NHS organisations meet challenges and find new ways of solving problems.