Thousands of months of NHS working time are being lost over work-related burnout, a survey conducted by the Society of Radiographers has found.
According to the survey of more than 1,300 radiographers, two in three (65 per cent) have experienced burnout directly related to work. More than a quarter (28 per cent) had taken time off from work over burnout. Almost a third (31 per cent) had to take off more than a month.
Across the SoR’s 33,000 members, this could mean more than 9,000 radiographers across the UK have taken sick leave due to burnout.
'This dynamic impairs patient safety'
Responding to the survey, a diagnostic radiographer in London told the SoR: “Because my department was restructured, I ended up doing two big jobs. I managed, but it was super-stressful. I finally snapped in July 2023. I had a skin lesion on my arm, so I went to see my GP. And he said: ‘You seem very stressed.’ I just started talking, and next thing I was signed off work for a month.
“I was a bit shocked, because I’d felt like that before, and I’d just got on with it. I thought, ‘I’ll take a couple of weeks off work, and then I’ll go back.’ I actually went back into work that same day and worked until 7pm, clearing everything up before I went off sick.
“One month off sick developed into four months. I just completely withdrew. I hardly saw my family. At the end of four months, I didn’t really feel ready to go back to work, but I also felt it was now or never. Now, I’m just doing one job, but I almost feel lazy or guilty, which is ridiculous. You shouldn’t feel guilty for just doing your hours at work.”
More support is needed
In the UK average vacancy rates in diagnostic radiography have reached 13.4 per cent, according to SoR statistics. Most departments rely on overtime to fill their rosters.
A diagnostic radiographer in Liverpool told the SoR that he had worked 22 days in a row, because colleagues were so desperate for support, and he didn’t want to leave patients waiting any longer than necessary for treatment.
Jason Elliott, a lecturer in diagnostic radiography at Cardiff University who has researched NHS burnout, said that this is not uncommon. He spoke to a number of radiographers who reported working 14 days in a row without a break. Others move between multiple departments, doing night shifts on their regular rota, followed by overnights covering A&E.
He believes NHS employees need to be given the support necessary to protect themselves from long-term burnout.
'We want to be part of the solution'
Dean Rogers, SoR director of industrial strategy, said: “The NHS is broken, and the SoR wants to help the government repair it. Demand is increasing, and the NHS simply does not have the capacity to meet it. As this survey shows, we cannot expect the existing workforce to continue to pick up the slack."
The government has proposed creating 40,000 additional appointments per week by increasing overtime hours and weekend working – but Mr Rogers warned this would only result in more burnout.
“In the face of current staff shortages, there are simply no additional hours left to work safely,” he said. “The SoR is ready to engage positively. We want to be part of the solution to the crisis in the NHS. But part of the solution also has to be a salary that encourages new radiographers into the profession – rather than driving them away. Doctors, nurses and radiographers are vital to healing the NHS. ”
The survey’s findings echo concerns raised in last weeks’ review of the NHS by Lord Ara Darzi, where he highlighted the high levels of sickness-related absence affecting the service.
Lord Darzi stated: “Pressure and stress are at high levels which contributes to poor morale. This leads to burnout, absenteeism, high turnover, and the loss of trained staff. This dynamic impairs patient safety. There are distressingly high-levels of sickness absence – as much as one working month a year for each nurse and each midwife working in the NHS.”
The SoR's Radiography Manifesto, published in March 2024, calls on political parties to: commit to inflation-proof pay awards and pay restoration to 2008 levels; ensure increasing demand can be met with strategic workforce planning; enable people to enter, develop and progress within the radiography profession; ensure safe working practices, adequate staffing numbers and a skills mix in all areas of radiography; provide adequate funding for a world-class health and social-care system throughout the UK.
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