The report, authored by Andrew Weyman, Richard Glendinning, Rachel O'Hara, Joanne Coster and Deborah Roy, draws on data from four waves of a survey of NHS staff, collected between winter 2020/1 and spring 2023, supplemented by in-depth interviews. It reveals a high rate of NHS staff seeking work outside the NHS, with 47% of frontline staff checking job listings outside the NHS between March and June 2023, and 14% (one in seven) reporting having applied for non-NHS jobs. Key findings include:
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The proportion of staff who would recommend working for the NHS dropped from 61% to 37% between winter 2020/21 and spring 2023. The figure for nurses was markedly lower than the all-staff rate, at 26%. |
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The four most commonly cited reasons for leaving the NHS were stress (71%), workload (70%), shortage of staff/resources (69%) and pay (65%). Pay showed the largest relative change (10 percentage points) between spring 2022 and spring 2023. The influence of factors that motivate staff to stay, such as job security and job satisfaction, has weakened since 2020. |
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One in two NHS staff reported a worsening of morale or stress. Staff confidence over improvement to working conditions and their future in the NHS were low. |
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Reports of burnout show a rising trend, with one in two staff reporting ‘feeling very tired or drained’ most or even every day. |
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Staff viewed improvement to pay, starting levels, workload and recognition by Government as the top priorities for change to increase retention rates. |
For more details and other key findings, read the full report here: https://www.bath.ac.uk/publications/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go-2-influences-on-nhs-staff-retention-in-the-post-covid-19-world/