Ethnicity and the experience of whistleblowing in the NHS 2014

In March 2014 a document was published entitled “The ‘snowy white peaks’ of the NHS: a survey of discrimination in governance and leadership and the potential impact on patient care in London and England”. Like previous as well as subsequent reports, this pointed to evidence which strongly suggests that less favourable treatment of BME staff in the NHS has serious consequences for the effective running of the NHS as well as negatively impacting on patient care. In June 2014 the Secretary of State for Health, Jeremy Hunt, appointed Sir Robert Francis Q.C.to chair an independent review into creating an open and honest reporting culture in the NHS. The Review was established in response to ongoing disquiet about the manner in which health service employers dealt with whistleblowers and the concerns they raised. In recent years, unsafe treatment and care had been exposed but there was evidence that NHS staff felt unable to speak out or were ignored when they did (Report of the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry 2013). Indeed, in 2013 the health service staff survey revealed that only 72% were confident that it would be safe to raise a concern .
As part of the Francis review, Middlesex University researchers were commissioned to establish a confidential online system for collecting data. In August and September that year surveys were conducted of workers in NHS primary and secondary care settings and NHS Trusts. 15,120 people responded to the survey of trust staff and 4,644 responded to the survey of those working in GP practices and community pharmacies. Although respondents were self-selecting, their profile closely reflected that of the health service generally in terms of gender, age, ethnic background and direct contact with patients.