We are delighted to share with you, a series of 5 video learning scenarios, designed to support colleagues deal with inappropriate behaviour in the moment, whilst in work, and prevent these behaviours from escalating.

The 2023 North-West National Staff Survey tells us that 16% (over 14,800) Secondary Care staff experience bullying and harassment from colleagues, and 9% (over 8,000) staff experience bullying and harassment from managers. It is a given that this figure is likely to be higher across the whole Health and Care workforce.

In response, in early 2024, NW NHS England set up a working group of interested colleagues from across our Health and Care settings, to focus on the inappropriate behaviours we see and hear about in the workplace, and how we could collectively address these.

After completing research into the wealth of civility and respect resources available, the group decided there were lots of resources highlighting the theory, the what, the why, but very few focussing on the really practical ‘how’ colleagues can deal with inappropriate behaviour in the moment, i.e. how do you start the conversation, and therefore help prevent these behaviours escalating.

NW NHS England went on to collaborate with ‘Wake The Beast’, a performing arts and theatre company to create practical video learning scenarios for colleagues. In order to develop the scripts for the scenarios, they facilitated conversations with 50 of our Health and Care colleagues who were willing to share their lived experiences of inappropriate behaviour whilst in work. Wake The Beast used these lived experiences and their verbatim words to create the series of 5 video learning scenarios. Each scenario focusses on ‘how’ individuals can deal with inappropriate behaviours from the perspectives of, the witness, the first listener, the victim, the line manager and the perpetrator.

Organisations, including Secondary Care, Primary Care, Social Care, Higher Education Institutions, Integrated Care Boards, NHS England and others, can freely use these resources in whichever way works best for their current need, so they could be used in campaigns, or as training materials for example.

Please Click here to access the videos via a Flipbook, which is accessible by all our Health & Care organisations.

We are pleased to announce that 2 additional video learning scenarios have been added to the Civility and Respect Flipbook – North West Civility and Respect Video Learning Scenario.

They are:

1. Try Harder – focussing on the learning for trainees and students entering the workplace.
2. Crossing the Line – highlights some of the ‘low level’ sexually inappropriate behaviours colleagues can face in the working environment, and ideas for how these could be dealt with.

Continuing the collaboration with Wake The Beast (a performing arts and theatre company) these additional scenarios have again been created using the lived experiences of some of our health and care colleagues in the North West. Their verbatim words have been used throughout and acted out by Wake The Beast actors.

Organisations, including secondary care, primary care, social care, higher education institutions, Integrated Care Boards, NHS England and others, can freely use all 7 video scenarios in whichever way works best for their current need. Facilitator guidance to support both videos have also been created.

Many organisations/teams have already been using these scenarios to support leadership training, civility campaigns, colleague inductions, and student transition. In just 5 months, all 5 videos have been watched over 1,200 times with Ripples over 2,000 times, and feedback so far has been really positive. We are also starting to work with a few organisations to obtain a longitudinal evaluation to measure impact.