The North West London LDC is working with the North West London Training Hub to deliver the Freedom to Speak Up Guardian (FTSUG) function. Initially this will only be available to dentists and their teams working in Hammersmith and Fulham, but we hope to be able to roll the model out across the whole of north west London shortly.
Freedom to Speak Up is an important function for the NHS introduced to ensure that everyone involved in the delivery of NHS care has the confidence and support to raise issues and concerns. The function was formalised following Sir Robert Francis’ investigation into whistleblowing in the NHS.
The FTSUG is for every member of the dental team to contact if they feel there are any issues that they would like to raise that they cannot do so by normal routes. This means dentists, therapists, hygienists, dental nurses, reception staff, practice managers, anyone involved in the practice. You can find out more information about how the FTSUG can help in this flyer and be sure to put up this poster in your staff room.
While Freedom to Speak Up was implemented in secondary care and other large settings, primary care, owing to its multiplicity of providers and smaller organisations have struggled to implement this effectively. GPs are part of Primary Care Networks and have other more collaborative ways of working than exist in primary care dentistry. So, finding a suitable impartial place for a Guardian can be difficult in primary care dentistry. The Guardian needs to be accessible to all and inspire trust from every member of the dental team.
The difficulties of implementing FTSUG in primary care were recognised by the Primary Care Guidance and articulated as:
- Many work in small independent units and it is harder for them to raise concerns confidentially or anonymously
- There is a sense of greater risk to their employment if they are raising concerns about someone who may be their direct employer
- Working in ancillary and non-clinical roles, there are likely to be fewer options for raising concerns externally because they may not have access to a professional body or union.
This is why we are so pleased to be partnering with the North West London Training Hub and their experienced Freedom to Speak Up Guardians for practitioners in Hammersmith and Fulham.
