The FTP Process
Buddy scheme
Our Buddy scheme aims to reduce the isolation and the fear of talking about the FtP process.
Nurses and midwives can discuss their experience confidentially with their Buddy who has been through the process and fully understands its impact.
One of the hardest thing about going through any investigatory process is the isolation it brings. The first thing most healthcare professionals are told when subject to an employer investigation is to not discuss it with anyone.
By the time they reach FtP investigation, they have already been subject to isolation from work colleagues, fear and anxiety. An impact survey that we started in 2019 shows the major impact on self-worth, financial hardship and loss of professional and personal identity that lasts far beyond when the case is closed.
Mental Health Impact - January 2019
- Over half of the respondents rated effects on their mental health being the worst affected
- 67.3% did not know where to go for support
- 96% stated experiencing difficulty sleeping as a symptom of Ft process
- 88% stated experiencing poor self confidence as a symptom of Ft process
- 90% stated experiencing difficulty trusting people as a symptom of FtP
- process
- 92% of those that responded felt that the Ft process contributed to the
- symptoms they suffered
- 27% of respondents who received a “no case to answer” outcome returned to
- work but at a lower level than before Ft with a further 23.2% deciding to leave the profession anyway this equates to 16 of the respondents )
- 90% of those who suffered financial issues resulted from loss of earnings
- 31% were unable to continue mortgage payments
- 46% were unable to pay essential bills
Our support group aims to reduce this isolation and take the fear out of talking about the process. Nurses and midwives can discuss their experience confidentially with others who have been through the process themselves and fully understand the impact.
Despite services being available via both the NMC and Unions for short term counselling, we are unsure of the benefits they have on longer-term effects, and retention in the workplace or profession. These counselling services are an extremely useful support mechanism and we encourage all registrants who we buddy to undertake counselling. It can help them gain insight into mental health issues, explore other factors in their life that may be impacting their practice, and also introduce coping strategies.
However, the NMC and Union counselling services rarely address the key issues faced by those undergoing investigation by their regulator, and are only available for 4-6 sessions.
We are aware that this scenario is not unique to the Nursing and Midwifery professions. We are contacted by many other Allied Healthcare Professionals who are struggling and finding it difficult to get any specific support with FtP investigations.
The Laura Hyde Foundation pilot that we ran previously is now embedded in our daily support via the Buddy Program.
Those being buddied benefit from:
- One-to-one support with an allocated Buddy from the same level on the register, who has been through and concluded their FtP case.
- Up to 10 hourly sessions with their buddy to explore impact on personal and professional life, including strategies on how to cope with FtP. These include how to disclose to colleagues they are going through FtP, or dealing with conflict or potential situations that, prior to FtP, they would have raised, but now feel anxious to do so.
- Signposting for legal advice and other specific support areas e.g. managing personal finances.
The buddy service does not provide:
- A counselling service
- Advice on a registrant’s case
Buddies benefit from:
- monthly debrief sessions with a trained psychologist
- training for the role
- a chance to give something back and adapted skills to take back to the workplace.
We all want safe practitioners, and by giving peer-to-peer support we can improve the patient care experience, as well a more positive impact on career choices for those having gone through FtP.
Some registrants will find themselves removed from work either during, or at the end of the investigation period. From our experience, we know that well-prepared registrants will engage in the FtP process better and often achieve a more positive outcome because of this. Our buddies will help them with this preparation.
Buddy Scheme
If you would like to find out more information about our Buddy Scheme, please get in touch.