Engaging staff to deliver compassionate care and reduce harm

The delivery of compassionate care leads to safer care but this will only occur with an engaged workforce under effective leadership. In addition, there is a need to understand the behaviours that drive nurses to make particular decisions about care. This article describes the pilot of a simple survey tool (ENGAGE) to ascertain levels of staff engagement to use as an enabler of effective change. It also describes a unique pilot initiative of focus group work, quality improvements and leadership coaching on two hospital wards. This work centred on the patient-nurse relationship and challenged the traditional teaching of preventing harm. Initial results were promising: while many staff did not feel nurtured or guided by their manager or acknowledged by the senior team, they did feel glad to come to work and empowered to improve patient care. Three months after the first ENGAGE survey, a repeat found significantly improved levels of engagement. Alongside this were improvements in avoidable harms and patient experience. Staff were motivated to improve care and admitted they did not really see their patients as individuals with identity and personality. Managers were motivated to improve engagement and take their wards forward.