The Whistleblowing Principles say that an effective procedure for raising concerns is: supportive to people who raise a concern and all people involved in the procedure.
We encourage NHS Boards to have early conversations with people who raise concerns about the support available, signposting them to those options and to be mindful that ongoing support, including after the process is concluded, is likely to be beneficial (we have more information on post-investigation communication on our website).
We sometimes receive requests for support while concerns are being looked into within the local procedure and while we are investigating a complaint. This is not something that INWO can offer, and the Standards are clear that the local organisation/employer should provide access to support to anyone that raises a whistleblowing concerns or is involved in the process.
This could be through a confidential contact or through occupational health. It is also important to offer independent confidential support options, for example through a confidential direct referral to an employee assistance programme. There are other potential sources of support too:
- Able Futures provide mental health support for employees (Support for mental health at work | Able Futures Mental Health Support Service)
- NHS Practitioner Health provides mental health support to all registered professionals in health and social care (Accessing The Service: Regulated NHS & Care Staff in Scotland)
- The National Wellbeing Hub offers a range of support services for NHS staff (Home - National Wellbeing Hub)
The INWO team provide a person-centred service to whistleblowers and can make findings and recommendations about support in the local process, but it is not our role to provide support. We will signpost to the above services and encourage NHS organisations to ensure they speak to whistleblowers about appropriate support, but we cannot be aware of all the local support arrangements in your area, and whistleblowers are likely to need support before they come to the INWO and potentially afterwards. We encourage boards to signpost to their local support arrangements and employee assistance programmes at the earliest opportunity.