Birmingham City hospital's payout to stressed health worker Sep 28 2009 by Alison Dayani, A Birmingham hospital has been forced to pay a health worker £370,550 plus a further £24,000 every year of his life after he claimed working in the NHS caused him stress.
The retired manager, who was mainly office-based at City Hospital, in Winson Green, filed an injury claim following his retirement and has won his lengthy battle.
Sandwell and West Birmingham Trust chiefs have fought against making the payment for years but have now been ordered to do so by the Department of Health.
The senior officer at City Hospital, in Winson Green, retired in 1996 but later filed a claim over what is believed to be a stress psychologically-related injury from the NHS Injury Benefit Scheme, which gives compensation to members of staff who suffered permanent incapacity or an injury mainly caused by their duties.
Lawyer Iain Shoolbred, workplace illness specialist at Birmingham law firm Irwin Mitchell, said the sum was a large payout for suffering stress at work.
“Working in the public sector does seem to be stressful and two-thirds of the stress at work cases I get are from jobs in the council or NHS,” said Mr Shoolbred. “The NHS benefit scheme is probably more generous than court settlements as the court payments are still not as high as they should be.
“Generally, stress injuries are becoming more common as legislation is more protective of an employee, there are longer working hours and some unscrupulous companies that make life difficult for workers to force them out.”
The high price of legal claims is taking its toll on the NHS. More than £48 million was paid out on behalf of West Midlands hospitals and primary care trusts in the 2008-09 year by the NHS Litigation Authority, following clinical negligence cases bought by patients.
Of this only £31 million went to patients themselves, with £17 million spent on legal fees.
Ministers have expressed concern about the amount of NHS money going to the legal profession and are set to publish proposals to change the law.

Welcome to August's stress e-bulletin.

In this issue: be one of the first to test some new management tools and read about changes to a HSE stress leaflet.

GET INVOLVED - TEST SOME NEW TOOLS

HSE is working with colleagues at CIPD and IiP to design a new set of Management Competency tools. Now is your chance to get involved and test them out.
Log on to HSE's stress website to find out more: http://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/volunteer.htm?ebul=stress/aug09&cr=01

CHANGES TO HSE LEAFLET

We are in the process of updating one of our leaflets, 'Making the stress Management Standards work'.
Read the old leaflet at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/misc714.pdf?ebul=stress/aug09&cr=02
And have a look at our proposed changes here:
http://webcommunities.hse.gov.uk/inovem/inovem.ti/stress_solutions/view?objectId=124080

EVENTS

REDUCING ABSENCE IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR

Capita's 10th National Conference
Friday 25th September 2009 - Central London Innovative solutions and effective management techniques to reduce the impact of sickness absence on your organisation's productivity and budgets. More info:
http://www.capitaconferences.co.uk/OurConferences/Health/Reducing+Absence+in+the+Public+Sector.htm

STAFF PROTECTION AND WELLBEING '09
19 October, London
The Commonsense Approach to Health & Safety in the Public Sector.
Staff Protection & Wellbeing 09 will take place at QEII Conference Centre, London, 19 October on the first day of the 2009 European Health and Safety Week. The event will bring together public-sector organisations to share good practice, common health and safety concerns, aims and objectives. There will also be a range of exhibition stands and Judith Hackitt CBE, Chair of HSE will also be present. More info:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/events/protwell.htm?ebul=stress/aug09&cr=03


THAT'S ALL FOR THIS MONTH, THANKS FOR READING.

Labels: General Notice

Would you like to save money? Be able to buy things that you previously couldn't afford? Have more spending money on your holidays?Howden and ISMA UK have come together to offer ISMA members significant discounts on a wide range of item including holiday travel, cosmetics, cars, gym membership etc etc. Have a look through the on line brochure and see where you could make savings. If there is something you would like which isn't there, then let the Administrator know and Howden will be informed. You do not have to be a Howden customer to get the discounts, however they have special rates for ISMA members and their non discounted rates compare very favourably with others in the market

Labels: General Notice

The Annual General Meeting of ISMA UK will be held at the University of Warwick on Saturday 12th September 2009 at 12.45 - 13.15. The Central Region of ISMA UK will also be holding their inaugural meeting on the same day. Come along and see some good presentations at the Central Meeting and exercise your democratic rights at the AGM. All relevant documentation will be posted on the Members' Area Blog

Labels: Press Release

Work stress 'increases under-50s heart risk'
By Nic Fleming, Medical Correspondent, Daily Telegraph - 23/01/2008

Stressed workers under 50 are two-thirds more likely to suffer from heart disease, a new study shows.
Employees with heavy workloads and little control over decisions that affect their professional lives were found to be 68 per cent more likely to suffer from heart disease than those who had easier jobs.
While previous studies have also suggested stress is linked to cardiovascular problems, the new research sheds light on the specific changes to the nervous system and the body's hormone levels that cause the increased risk.
Researchers found stress at work increased the risk of heart attacks by undermining the body's natural mechanisms for coping under pressure.
The research team at University College London, which monitored more than 10,000 civil servants over 12 years, showed how the hearts of those under the most pressure became less able to change the rate at which they beat in response to stress over time.
They also found that high workplace demands also encourage smoking, poor diet and a lack of physical activity - all linked to increased danger of heart disease.
Dr Tarani Chandola, a senior lecturer in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at UCL who led the study, said: "This is the first large study of people in everyday working life, rather than just of chronic burnt-out patients, showing that those who report more stress are also more likely to have certain biological stress responses."
He added that during 12 years of follow-up the researchers ''found that chronic work stress was associated with coronary heart disease and this association was stronger among both men and women aged under 50 - their risk of coronary heart disease was an average of 68 per cent more than for people who reported no stress at work".
Dr Chandola and colleagues, whose research is published in the European Heart Journal, questioned 10,308 civil servants aged between 35 and 55 on work stress. They rated the demands of their jobs, how much control they had over decisions and the levels of support they received from colleagues and superiors.
Worker status - While the younger worker seemed to be more at risk, the findings were the same regardless of the status of the worker. Previous studies had suggested those of lower employment grades may be more at risk. "We did not find strong evidence that the effect of work stress on heart disease is worse for those in lower grades - the effect of stress was pretty much the same across different grades," said Dr Chandola.
The body defends the heart from damage caused by stress through a system called the autonomic nervous system. Stressful situations trigger immediate increases in levels of the hormone adrenaline and boost heart rate. These subside gradually when conditions return to normal.
However, repeatedly high levels of stress causes wear and tear, undermining this so-called heart rate variability - the heart's natural stress defence mechanism.

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The International Stress Management Association concurs that this study also reinforces what has been identified by previous research, that stress at work is often associated with unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, lack of exercise and a poor diet - all which can impact on the overall health of the heart.
For further information regarding this article or to find a stress management trainer in your area you can contact:
The International Stress Management Association (ISMAUK) on:
T: 01179 697284 E:stress@isma.org.uk W:www.isma.org.uk

Press Release


NATIONAL STRESS AWARENESS DAY 2009 is on 4th November. The theme for this year's campaign will be announced in the summer. The International Stress Management Association (ISMA) is encouraging everyone to to acknowledge NSAD and to think about how unproductive and demoralising stress can be. Acknowledging the things that put undue pressure on your life and then doing something positive and constructive to manage that pressure can cut stress off at it's roots. "Worrying is extremely ineffective" says Ann McCracken, Chair of ISMA. "Worrying drains your energy, saps your strength and makes you less able to cope with every day pressure. I find a lot of people on training courses tell me that they worry about lots of things but it doesn’t change anything!" she said. Please vist the NSAD website (http://www.nationalstressawarenessday.co.uk ) where you can find information on how to reduce your pressures. Using Cognitive Behavioural techniques and visualisation helps put people back in control of their lives when worry gets too much. It ‘s good news for worriers and good news for their health. ENDS ISMA UK The International Stress Management Association UK is a registered charity with a multi-disciplinary professional membership. It exists to promote sound knowledge and best practice in the prevention and reduction of human stress. It sets professional standards for the benefit of individuals and organisations using the services of its members. ISMA was founded and is still supported by the top names in the field of Stress Management. It is the world's largest and most widespread organisation of Stress Management professionals with branches in 10 countries. They have organised National Stress Awareness Day for the past 9 years Media contacts:

Jenny Edwards National Stress Awareness Day Co-ordinator Tel:+ 44 (0) 7511271777

Ann McCracken Chair ISMA /f: + 44 (0) 1788 823361 m: + 44 (0) 7768018131

Labels: Press Release