Biomedical subjects

L Leighton-Beck

Publications and source records attributed to L Leighton-Beck.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Consultants in nhs scotland: a survey of work commitments, remuneration, job satisfaction and retirement plans.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: UK consultants have reported working long hours, increased stress and reduced morale. This study set out to elicit consultants' views on flexible working and to gather data on consultants' workloads, remuneration, job satisfaction and retirement plans. As such it is the first comprehensive study of consultants in NHS Scotland. METHODS: The Information and Statistics Division of the Scottish Executive Health Dept provided a list of consultants working in NHS Scotland Focus groups and interviews informed the design of a postal self-completion, questionnaire. RESULTS: The response ratewas 61%. Almost two-thirds (65%) of respondents felt their workloads were unreasonable and unsustainable and 67% were unable to provide their desired standards of patient care. Two-thirds (67%) did not normally take meal breaks, 63% had insufficient time for outside interests, whilst 44% felt their health was being adversely affected Many (84%) believed that some of their work could be delegated to someone less qualified but 79% agreed that there were insufficient staff to make this possible. The average planned retirement age was 60 years, with 23% describing their plans as definite and 70% as quite or very likely. When asked what might induce them to postpone retirement, 50% cited reduced workload/work intensity. CONCLUSIONS: In 2003, a majority of consultants in the UK voted in favour of the new consultant contract. This will improve consultant pay and introduce a standard 40-hour working week, including worked on-call. This should address tow of the main areas of consultant dissatisfaction in NHS Scotland. However, staff shortages will require to be addressed if the contract is to be successfully implemented.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

A framework for developing excellence as a clinical educator.

The current emphasis on providing quality undergraduate and postgraduate medical education has focused attention on the educational responsibilities of all doctors. There is a greater awareness of the need to train doctors as educators and courses have been set up to satisfy this need. Some courses, such as those on how to conduct appraisal, are specific to one task facing a medical educator. Other courses take a broader view and relate educational theory to practice. In this paper we describe an outcome-based approach in which competence in teaching is defined in terms of 12 learning outcomes. The framework provides a holistic approach to the roles of the teacher and supports the professionalism of teaching. Such a framework provides the basis for the development of a curriculum for teaching excellence. It helps to define important competences for different categories of teachers, communicate the areas to be addressed in a course, identify gaps in course provision, evaluate courses, assist in staff planning and allow individuals to assess their personal learning needs. The framework is presented to encourage wider debate.

Curriculum↗

PubMed2000

Raising research awareness among midwives and nurses: does it work?

OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two approaches to increase research awareness among midwives and nurses. DESIGN: Quasi-experimental with the attitudes of staff in the two groups being measured at two points (January and October 1997). SAMPLE: All midwives and nurses working in four clinical areas in an acute NHS Trust. The intervention arm of the study involved all midwives and nurses in the Clinical Directorate of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, while the control arm involved all nurses working in a specialist oncology and haematology unit and in the children's directorate. ETHICS: The Joint Ethics Committee considered approval unnecessary because the study involved staff and not patients. DATA COLLECTION: Data were collected by self-complete questionnaires. INTERVENTIONS: A programme of education with policy and practice interventions targeted at ward sisters. OUTCOME MEASURES: Staff attitudes to, knowledge of, and level of involvement in, research. RESULTS: The study demonstrated a significant increase in both knowledge and use of research resources. Following the programme of education, staff in the intervention group were significantly more likely to use resources associated with research utilization and to report that they had read a research paper within the last month. STUDY LIMITATIONS: The time scale of the intervention was restricted by the funding available; a significant Hawthorne effect was evident with both groups showing an increase in knowledge; the pragmatic nature of the study meant that it was not possible to randomize the study groups; the scale of the study did not permit an economic evaluation. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of clinical governance challenges healthcare providers to improve the care they deliver. There are huge opportunities for Trusts to invest in developing staff knowledge and use of research. However, staff will only seize these opportunities if there is an appropriate, enabling environment--an environment that delivers intensive interventions and is sensitive to the wider structural factors in the NHS affecting staff morale and commitment. In the absence of this environment, what may be seen as opportunities to managers may be regarded as just another burden by staff.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Networking: putting research at the heart of professional practice.

Nursing staff in Scotland have access to five local multidisciplinary health services research Networks. These offer nurses guidance, advice and support on relevant but unanswered questions relating to their clinical practice, thus helping them to take forward their enquiry. This article explores the origin, usefulness and developing role of these Networks with particular reference to the North of Scotland Network. Networking is recommended as an effective intervention to facilitate the development of research, to promote the quality, quantity and usefulness of research, and to place research into patient care at the heart of nursing practice.

Community Networks↗