Promoting Staff Wellbeing in UK NHS Ambulance Personnel (SWAP) – what works and how can we do better?

PROJECT TITLE PROMOTING STAFF WELLBEING IN UK NHS AMBULANCE PERSONNEL (SWAP) – WHAT WORKS AND HOW CAN WE DO BETTER?
Funding body Health Education England
Total funding  £180,000
Team
  • Dr Fiona Bell, Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
  • Prof Niro Siriwardena, CaHRU, University of Lincoln & East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
  • Kelly Hird, Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
  • Prof Kristy Sanderson, University of East Anglia
  • Dr Gary Pritchard, University of East Anglia
  • Viet-Hai Phung, CaHRU, University of Lincoln
  • Prof Paresh Wankhade, Edge Hill University
Team/consortium
  • Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
  • East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
  • University of Lincoln
  • University of East Anglia
  • Edge Hill University
Overarching aim The overarching aim is to explore characteristics of successful employee mental wellbeing services within staff groupings in UK ambulance services and to understand how existing services could be improved.
Objectives The objectives of this study are:

a. To determine the variation in rates of sickness absence across ambulance staff groupings.

b. To understand variation in UK ambulance service policies and strategies for staff wellbeing, focussing on specific mental wellbeing strategies and intervention, and suicide prevention strategies and interventions.

c. To understand the knowledge and perceptions of UK ambulance staff of wellbeing interventions available through their employer and informal support arrangements.
Methods Multimethods: analysis of ambulance staff sickness data, documentary analysis of ambulance wellbeing and sickness prevention initiatives, qualitative interviews of staff groups.
Outcomes Recommendations: will be produced for the development of ambulance staff wellbeing services.
Outputs Publications

Asghar Z, Wankhade P, Bell F, Sanderson K, Hird K, Phung VH, Siriwardena AN (2021).  Trends, variations, and prediction of staff sickness absence rates among NHS ambulance services in England: a time series study. BMJ Open 0:e053885.

Conference presentations
Impact We aim to create impact by using the findings to inform ambulance wellbeing services.