An Exploration of the Experiences of Nursing Staff during the Time of a Large Reconfiguration of Cancer Services at an NHS Hospital

Elder, Laura

Abstract

Organisational change is a frequent practice within organisations. Research has shown organisational change to be highly complex, with many challenging considerations. Employees are identified as a significant influencing factor in the overall outcome of a change programme. However, the impact of change on individual employees is often not fully understood or acknowledged. Based on a review of existing literature, a need was identified for change practitioners to understand the lived experience of change for employees and review current practices to improve future change practices. This study occurred in a specialist NHS hospital reconfiguring its service delivery structure, merging witha neighbouring specialist service and moving location to a new hospital build. The study occurred approximately one year before the planned move into the new hospital building. A qualitative research design included one-to-one semi-structured interviews with ten nurses who had experienced the change programme for over five years. Their experiences were shared, and a number of dominant themes were discussed through a thematic analysis process. My findings are that the leadership of that change highly influences the experience of change by employees. This experience, whether positive or negative, was found to consequently affect many employee factors such as the level of engagement in change, commitment to the organisation, job satisfaction and productivity levels. This study concludes with recommendations for future change practices.

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: May 23, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 3, 2023
• Award Date: Jun 2, 2023