Jermaine Ravalier

Stress in our public services is the number one cause of long-term sickness absence in the UK, costing billions of pounds per year. This talk will outline two projects - the first looking at working conditions and stress in UK social workers, and the second the outline of a recent ESRC-funded project into stress (and stress management interventions) in the NHS. The first project will therefore outline why stress is such a big issue in our social services, the findings of a nation-wide survey, and the steps that are being taken in order to improve on the findings. In the second half of the presentation I will describe the rationale and methods behind the project which aims to design, implement, and evaluate a series of stress management interventions for four NHS Trusts. It is anticipated that stress costs approximately £800 per individual employed in the healthcare sector. Therefore stress management interventions which are evidence-based and effective are highly sought-after, yet distinctly lacking. This project will help to fill that gap.