On the 10th anniversary of the HSE’s ‘Dignity at Work Policy’ coming into operation, the INMO partnered with National University of Ireland, Galway and National College of Ireland to conduct a survey on current levels, experiences and consequences of workplace bullying.
Academic and practitioner evidence suggests that nurses and midwives working in Ireland continue to frequently experience workplace bullying and that this has very negative consequences for their personal health, and their personal and family relationships. This adds to already high levels of stress experienced by nurses and midwives working within the Irish health care system.
The survey is seeking input from nurses and midwives on how bullying can be reduced and what support they need if they experience or witness bullying in their workplaces. It can be completed online here. The survey will take approximately 10 minutes, and the evaluation and results will be available to the INMO in October 2014.
Prof Maura Sheehan of NUI Galway, is heading the survey and working with Dr TJ McCabe, Lecturer in HRM and Research Methods at NCI. A number of focus groups have already been held.
Commenting on the study, Dr McCabe said:
“Nurses and midwives operate at the ‘coal face’ of our Health Service. Most people here in Ireland know a nurse or a midwife. They are friends with or they are related to a nurse or a midwife. The work nurses and midwives do, their commitment and dedication, is essential to the successful running of our Health Service. While the findings from our focus group are shocking and disturbing, the purpose of our research is both constructive and positive.”
About Dr TJ McCabe
Dr McCabe has recently written a chapter titled, Graduate Employability, for the up and coming book Human Resource Development: A Concise Introduction, Carbery R. and Cross C. (Eds) due out in 2015. He has also recently co-authored two articles for the International Journal of Nursing Studies with Professor Sally Sambrook, University Bangor, Wales.
Some of his other publications include:
McCabe, T.J., & Garvan, T.N., (2008), A Study of the drivers of Commitment amongst nurses, The Salience of Training and Development and Career Issues, Journal of European Industrial Training, Volume 32, Issue 7, p 528-568.
McCabe, T.J., Cotter S., Ryan F., Hegarty H., and Keane E. (2003), Immunisation: The Views of Parents and Health Professionals, Euro Surveillance, Vol. 8, No. 6, June 2003.