Staff Attitudes & Health Professionals
Ipsos MORI has extensive experience of working with NHS staff and health care professionals and is an approved contractor for the National NHS Staff Surveys. Our work is designed to help local management teams focus on the key factors that will build staff motivation and commitment.
Below are some examples of our work amongst staff and health professionals:
National Programme for IT Baseline Study for NHS Connecting for Health (2005) This research aimed to provide baseline data on the National Programme for IT (NPfIT), a large-scale investment into IT infrastructure in the NHS. MORI conducted a telephone survey of six types of NHS staff: The survey showed that overall, NHS staff are supportive of what the programme is trying to achieve and consider it an important priority for the NHS. However, the survey also shows that NHS Connecting for Health, the new Department of Health agency delivering NPfIT, needs to build their engagement and communications further with frontline staff, especially doctors and nurses. The research study will be repeated at regular intervals, allowing NHS Connecting for Health to measure the impact of rollout of the programme and supporting NPfIT communications and stakeholder engagement activities.
Practitioner Perceptions: Factors Influencing Secondary Care Referral (2005) This study was conducted on behalf of King's College Hospital (KCH). In the context of the forthcoming Choose and Book programme and the likely influence GPs may have on the choice process, this research sought to identify GPs' perceptions of major south London Teaching and District General Hospitals. MORI was commissioned to conduct a series of 30 telephone depth interviews among GPs in South London and Kent. The research investigated what contributes to a good or bad reputation for hospitals among GPs, how they perceive their local hospitals and the reasons why patients are referred to particular Trusts. It also assessed non-clinical factors that influence perceptions of trusts, such as the efficiency of communication between consultants and GP surgeries.
NHS Staff Training Needs (2004) MORI have recently completed a quantitative research project assessing training needs and testing demand for potential training programmes for NHSU — the new university for all health and social care staff. The project has involved separate telephone surveys among nurses, health care assistants, doctors and allied health professionals, and some qualitative interviews and face-to-face quantitative survey work among porters and domestic staff in hospitals.
Dentists Attitudes to Changes to NHS Primary Care Dentistry in England (2004) On behalf of the British Dental Association (BDA), MORI recently completed research among BDA members exploring attitudes to the new contractual arrangements with PCTs.
Access to Dentists, GPs and Pharmacists in RBKC (2004) MORI recently completed a study for RBKC trying to understand issues associated with access to primary health care services in the borough. It involved depth interviews with dentists, GPs and pharmacists, focus groups with local community representatives and in-home quantitative surveys of residents in key target wards in the borough. The research is helping the PCT and the council to provide the support local dentists, GPs and pharmacists need to ensure services meet local needs.
U-I Information and Advice Line Research (2004) On behalf of NHSU, MORI are currently conducting a survey of NHS managers to explore awareness and views of the health sector U-I telephone and email helpline run by NHSU. The research will be used to inform approaches to increasing awareness and take-up of the helpline.
NHS Security and Counter Fraud and Security Management Service (2004) MORI conducted 1,900 interviews among 19 NHS staff sub-groups exploring awareness, attitudes and experiences regarding work place safety and policies.
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire NHS Staff and Residents Research (2002-2004) Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire SHA are undertaking a large scale development and restructuring of the local health economy incorporating new tiers of health services — surgi-centers and treatment centres, and more community-based services. Following qualitative research in 2002 MORI are now conducting telephone surveys with residents, doctors, nurses and managers to provide baseline quantitative measures of awareness, and attitudes to changes in local health services.
Membership research for the Royal College of Nursing (2003). Qualitative focus groups and a quantitative survey were conducted to identify the core membership services/products by their importance and extent of usage; and to examine the reasons for importance and usage. In addition, the research explored the level of membership engagement with RCN business, and the profile of members engaged and measured membership opinion and satisfaction with current services and the business of the RCN. The findings were used to assist the RCN's ongoing review of communications, membership engagement and service rationalisation. Last year, we also carried out a telephone survey of student members looking at their experience of clinical placements, access to benefits and the level of support they receive and in 2002 we conducted a postal membership survey looking at the views of internationally recruited nurses.
Eve of Congress poll for the RCN (2003) Looking at the experiences of student nurses. The findings were released on 27 April 2003 and the story was covered by the Evening Standard, the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mirror.
NHSU Consultation (2002-2004) MORI co-ordinated and reported on all the consultation connected with the launch of the new NHS University (NHSU). This was a large project involving a variety of consultation and research techniques aimed at gathering the views of a cross-section of people working in, for or with the NHS. This included Chief Executives and other managers in PCTs, SHAs and other health and social care organisations at national local level, as well as front line staff including doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, and ancillary staff. Our report and recommendations fed into NHSU's first Strategic Plan. Following this, MORI and MORI Market Dynamics conducted telephone surveys among front line staff and modelling work to explore training needs in more detail and to estimate demand for NHSU's initial learning programmes.
For Sanofi-Synthelabo, research among British Oncologists (2001) on satisfaction with forms of cancer treatment; A separate study was conducted among the general public on perceptions of cancer; the results of both were released in 2001.