One in six staff on sick leave are off as a result of mental health issues

Dr. Anne Kilgallen, the Trust Chief Executive, said the toll the coronavirus emergency was having on workers’ psychological well-being was of concern.

She told the Stormont Health Committee yesterday that absenteeism had not hit the heights feared in a worst case scenario. Yet a significant number of staff have been affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

“We have an absence rate at the moment of about 12 per cent so it is improving slightly.

“We didn’t actually face the worst case scenario of 20 per cent but we are in the realm of it. I would accept that.

“Eight per cent of that 12 per cent are off because of sickness, and the most common reason - and that’s about 16 per cent of those who are off - is mental health. So we are particularly concerned about that,” Dr. Kilgallen said.

The remaining four per cent were put on leave as it was not appropriate for them to be in the work place because they were shielding against infection from SARS-CoV-2.

Dr. Kilgallen told the committee the health and well-being of staff was of paramount importance for the Trust.

“We have a risk assessment process and all of our staff who are in vulnerable groups will have been offered that risk assessment and then arrangements put in place that are necessary to support them. So we have been proactive in identifying, where we could, potential ‘at-risk’ staff and providing the support for them. More broadly, in terms of supporting staff concerns and anxieties in the workplace we have had a mixture.

“We’ve had a psychological support line which has been well-used. We’ve had an occupational health helpline and we’ve also had general - through internet and through telephone - general queries, for people who are seeking information and haven’t been able to receive that from any other source,” she said.

The Trust has developed a framework document that is specifically focused on the psychological safety of staff.

Dr. Kilgallen explained: “Just now we have designated two of our psychology staff who are developing a training programme which will be added to our existing training for managers which is again about absolutely ensuring that at every level of the organisation managers are able to respond, sign-post staff, and indeed escalate concerns, where that’s necessary.”

She acknowledged safeguarding staff was a priority in bouncing back from the pandemic.

“We’re absolutely certain that supporting our staff is absolutely key to rebuilding our services,” she said.