NHS organisations have been taking part in our new Avoiding Harm programme and arranging conversations with their HR teams to address the harm associated with employee investigations.

The programme was launched at our annual conference in October, with the publication of the ‘When we do harm’ discussion paper.

Chief Exec, Julie Rogers, said, “The ‘Avoiding Harm’ programme has been created to help colleagues take a fresh look at how we deliver our policies and our practice as HR professionals. I realise that I’ve sometimes made decisions – often driven by the process and training – which failed to consider the person at the heart of the investigation and the impact it could have on colleagues and the wider organisation. I know many of my colleagues feel the same way.”

A Natural Discussion Simon Steward, Deputy CPO at the London Ambulance Service Trust, who took part in ‘100 Conversations’ reflected on their team conversation: “The paper gave us the structure for a natural discussion. Consensus emerged very quickly around the fact that, where we have investigations, we still have those unintended consequences – in other words, harm happens. So, one outcome of the meeting was that our team resolved to look at our formal investigations with completely fresh thinking.”

The programme highlights the damage that can occur, to both employees and organisations, when disciplinary processes are poorly commissioned and managed.

Ellie Valentine, Associate Director of Workforce and OD at Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust, explained how “… the parallel between employee harm and patient harm mirrors their approach to examining and understanding conduct and patient safety issues. It’s less of a leap to encourage colleagues to consider conduct issues in the same way as clinical issues through a harm reduction approach.”

Ellie and her team have welcomed the community that the HPMA is forming around the issue of employee harm, recognising that, while every organisation is different, this is something NHS people professionals are increasingly grappling with.

Unnecessary Harm

And they also have the support of their CEO, Len Richards, who said: “The Avoiding Harm programme gives us the tools to look again at how we run our employee investigations and ensure we are not causing unnecessary harm to our people so that they can deliver at their best.”

A programme of online events are supporting organisations in exploring the issues raised in the discussion paper. One attendee said: “Whilst it is important to acknowledge there is some great practise in the NHS, I also think that every HR professional and anyone who carries out investigations in the NHS could benefit from attending one of these sessions.”

“It’s been great to hear about the Avoiding Harm conversations that have started to take place around this area of HR practice,” said Andrew Cooper, development director for the programme. “From the feedback we’ve received so far, teams are finding these conversations helpful in reflecting on their current practice and agreeing actions on the areas they would like to improve.”

If you would like to take part in the ‘100 Conversations’ campaign, visit the Avoiding Harm webpages today. You’ll find links to the discussion paper, video and powerpoint material to support conversations – as well as the opportunity to attend one of our ‘Avoiding Harm: Improving employee investigations’ online events.

Take Part in the Avoiding Harm ‘100 Conversations’ Today

1. Arrange a meeting with your HR team (or even consider an exec or board discussion, on how this work fits into a wider focus on culture).
2. Share the When We Do Harm as a focus for your conversation.
3. Use the questions in the paper and the video resources to plan your session.
4. Hold the meeting and capture your top three reflections and actions to share with us in this quick survey