Employee Placement

Board: Lothian

Theme: Staff Wellbeing

Contact: Jenni Duncan, Head of Resourcing

NHS Lothian was awarded funding for an Employee Placement Service pilot. The pilot’s aim was to develop and implement a service for staff who are temporarily unfit to perform duties of their current post, but who may be fit to perform suitable alternative work in other areas in the short term. This can help improve the employee’s self-esteem as well as reduce the sickness absence record of the department.

“I am really enjoying my placement. I am learning all sorts of new skills and I am finding it completely new learning curve which is very interesting.”

The pilot was developed in partnership and included the Occupational Health Service (OHS) and Employee Relations (ER) teams.

The Employee Placement Coordinator role involves placing employees who are temporarily unfit for work into temporary suitable alternative work. Staff can either self-refer or be referred by their manager to the service.

The placements vary in length depending on occupational health advice and for the duration of the placement salary costs continue to be met by their permanent employing manager.

Positives:

  • Five successful placements where staff have returned to their substantive post
  • Seven placements where staff have been subsequently successfully redeployed
  • Health and wellbeing benefits to the member of staff continuing to work in a temporary alternative
  • Consensus from staff and employee relations is that the service has been beneficial
  • Benefit to placement managers who have secured extra help at no extra cost
  • Reduction in overall sick absence and the cost associated with it
  • “This experience has been really positive for me. It has given me routine and structure. It has made me feel useful by being able to contribute some of my skills to another team. All in all I have had a really good experience and it has done loads for my self-esteem and confidence.”

Challenges:

  • None reported

Suitable for national roll out:

  • Pilot remains under evaluation for mainstreaming within NHS Lothian
  • It has made a contribution to reducing long-term sick absence, an area which NHS Lothian, for sometime, been amongst the better performing NHS Boards
  • Awarded funding 2010/11

For further information on the project please contact Jenni Duncan, Head of Resourcing, on jenni.duncan@luht.scot.nhs.uk