Limited Career Progression Research Articles

Exploring the career aspirations of pre-registration trainee and qualified pharmacy technicians in NHS Birmingham and Solihull using a self-administered questionnaire

Abstract Introduction The NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan (LTWP) recommends expanding the number of pharmacy technicians to support transformation across the pharmacy workforce.1 Birmingham and Solihull Pharmacy Faculty (BSPF) undertook workforce planning, identifying challenges around recruitment and retention. Aim To identify the career aspirations of pre-registration trainee pharmacy technicians (PTPTs) and pharmacy technicians (PTs) to improve recruitment and retention and inform the BSol pharmacy workforce strategy. Method A self-administered online questionnaire (Microsoft Forms) was developed and piloted before emailing to PTPTs and PTs via the BSPF members to all sectors during November to December 2023. Themes included career aspirations (and support required to achieve these), views on career progression and pathways (and skill utilisation), training received, opinions on cross-sector working, retention and concerns post qualification. An excel spreadsheet of downloaded responses were analysed using descriptive statistics. Ethical approval was not required. Results PTPTs: Responses received were 29 (45%) out of 64 ICS PTPTs from all sectors. The majority, 20 (69%) were from secondary care, two (7%) worked cross-sector. Twenty (69%) were women, with seventeen (27%) aged 25 years and above on entering training. Post qualification, 21 (72%) preferred secondary care; role expectations included medication histories, accuracy checking and patient facing work. Post qualification concerns were autonomy, responsibility, utilising skills and changing sector. PTs: Responses received were 62 (13%) out of 477 ICS PTs from all sectors. The majority, 21 (34%) were from secondary care, six (10%) worked cross-sector. Fifty (81%) were women, length of experience varied with 16 (26%) working for 25 years or more. Common themes PTs identified limited career progression (clinical and leadership), feeling undervalued, work-related stress and salary as factors for leaving the profession. PTPTs and PTs identified location, continuity, familiarity, and progression as reasons for retention. Seventeen (27%) PTs said their skills were underutilised, 25 (40%) stated lack of opportunities affected progression. Only 17 (27%) said their organisation had a career pathway. Twenty (69%) PTPTs expected post-qualification training, but 17 (27%) PTs had received no training in the last three years (or gave no reply). Educational, clinical and leadership roles were common career aspirations for both PTPTs and PTs, facilitators being training opportunities, encouragement from seniors, cross-sector experience and creation of career pathways. Nineteen (66%) PTPTs and 46 (74%) PTs desired cross-sector working. All PTPTs were unfamiliar with other pharmacy sectors, 12 (41%) wanted shadowing opportunities. Discussion / Conclusion The study informs the BSol pharmacy workforce strategy to include: cross/multi-sector working, increase novel ‘top-of-license’ roles and develop career pathways for PTs, to support the NHS LTWP. PTPTs results suggest systems should recruit from an audience wider than schools and colleges, to explore this, the BSPF have funded a BSol PT fellowship. The BSPF are providing shadowing opportunities and the promotion of different pharmacy sectors in colleges. This study provides an insight into career aspirations to improve recruitment and retention of BSol pharmacy technicians. Study limitations include; participants are from BSol and/or the Midlands only, self-selected and small numbers (few from community pharmacy), with PTPTs at colleges only, thus results are not generalisable and risk bias. Reference 1. NHS England (2019). The NHS Long Term Plan. Available at: www.longtermplan.nhs.uk/publications/nhs-long-term-plan (accessed 31st May 2024). NHS Improvement (2019).

Careers in “woman‐friendly” occupations: Investigating the role of beauty consultant in the era of neoliberalism

AbstractThis article explores the paradoxical nature of beauty consultant careers in Japan. Despite being considered a “woman‐friendly” occupation, it reveals the challenging aspects of this profession in a neoliberal context. Japan's gender gap in employment is stark, with women often engaged in precarious positions, earning significantly less than men. The beauty industry, perceived as advancing women's empowerment, presents opportunities for women in management roles. However, the profession of a beauty consultant demands continuous beauty upkeep, making it a potentially unsustainable career. The research draws on interviews with former and current beauty consultants, supplemented by statistical data and observational research. It highlights their working environment, including entry requirements, training, career advancement, and aesthetic labor demands such as wearing company uniforms, using specific makeup, and maintaining a youthful appearance. Despite a seemingly supportive environment with maternity leave and career advancement prospects, the research reveals the reality of aesthetic labor demands, limited career progression, and challenges faced by women in sustaining their careers after life events like childbirth. Neoliberal norms impact these women, emphasizing self‐fulfillment, maintaining youth and beauty, and working post life events. In conclusion, the research offers insights into the gendered labor dynamics in Japan and broadens understanding of women's labor in the neoliberal context. It calls for a deeper examination of “woman‐friendly” workplaces and underscores the need to recognize the challenges women face in career progression in such environments.

Investigating the Causes of Swim Instructor Turnover in the Aquatics Industry

Employees are said to be the backbone of any organization. The aquatic industry is one of the largest employers in the sport and recreation sector and is rapidly growing, with career opportunities available to a diverse workforce for individuals of all ages and backgrounds (Sherry et al., 2021). The aquatics industry is experiencing increased voluntary and dysfunctional swim instructor turnover. Employee turnover is the rate at which individuals leave an organization, and high employee turnover can be disruptive and costly for management, employees, and customers. High swim instructor turnover undermines the effectiveness of swim instruction and exacerbates the risk of swimming-related injuries and drowning. Therefore, a critical first step is to better understand the reasons for turnover to address concerns with recruitment and swim instructor retention. High employee turnover should not be excused as an inherent characteristic of the aquatics industry, but rather the result of individual and systemic factors. As swim instructor turnover is an under-researched issue, we adopted an exploratory approach to this research. We utilized a qualitative research approach, collecting data through a series of semi-structured interviews, to explore the reasons for swim instructor turnover with nineteen (58% male, 42% female) former swim instructors. Most respondents reported a combination of reasons that ultimately led to separation from their position. A deductive analysis of the interview data revealed the reasons for turnover among former swim instructors: swim instructing as a temporary role, limited career progression, failing to understand and underestimating the swim instructor working environment, and a negative view of management. This research extends human resource management literature across the aquatics industry by identifying reasons for turnover from the perspective of former swim instructors. When swim instructors depart, it can disrupt existing relationships and workflows, and makes it so that fewer individuals get the benefits associated with learning to swim. These results suggest managers would benefit from implementing appropriate retention strategies to retain swim instructors, realistic job preview, swim instructor training and personal development, and exit interviews.

Doctors Strike During COVID-19 Pandemic in Malaysia

Doctors Strike During COVID-19 Pandemic in Malaysia

Cruel Optimism and Precarious Employment: The Crisis Ordinariness of Academic Work

Precarious employment is commonplace within the University-as-business model. Neoliberal and New Public Management agendas have influenced widespread insecurity, and limited career progression pathways within academic work. Qualitative multi-case data inform this investigation of how young academic workers cope with, and justify, their precarious situations in a large Australian university. This article introduces the notion of cruel optimism to analyse the unethical exploitation of desires of precariously employed academics. This analytical engagement extends empathetic engagement with the lived experiences and rationalisations of precariously employed academic workers, paying homage to their desires and negotiations. Findings demonstrate that participants were heavily invested in working towards achieving their good life fantasy which encompassed secure employment and the recognition this provided. Cruel optimism operated as participants developed coping mechanisms to deal with the ongoingness of their troubling situation as precarious workers uncertain how to change their precarious circumstances. Participants experienced cruel optimism as they navigated through issues of identity, control, and desire, related to their present and future lives as academic workers experiencing an impasse of crisis ordinariness. Optimism directed towards the academic scene of desire motivated participants’ daily actions and informed their understandings. Ethical elements of the impasse of precarious employment are presented in relation to the neoliberal and New Public Management-oriented University context. This article provides a novel conceptualisation of how precarious employment contributes to a relation of cruel optimism among workers by highlighting how organisations exploit the desires of insecure employees for extended periods of time, contributing to an impasse of crisis ordinariness.

Exploring how to sustain \u2018place-based\u2019 rural health academic research for informing rural health systems: a qualitative investigation

BackgroundThe field of rural health research is critical for informing health improvement in rural places but it involves researching in small teams and distributed sites that may have specific sustainability challenges. We aimed to evaluate this to inform how to sustain the field of rural health research.MethodsWe conducted In-depth semi-structured interviews of 50-70 minutes with 17 rural early career researchers who were from different research sites across rural Australia. Data were thematically coded.ResultsSeven sustainability challenges were noted, namely recognition, workload, networks, funding and strategic grants, organisational culture, job security, and career progression options. Rural researchers were poorly recognised for their work and researchers were not extended the same opportunities enjoyed by staff at main campuses. Unpredictable and high workloads stemmed from community demand and limited staff. Strategic grant opportunities failed to target the generalist, complex research in this field and the limited time researchers had for grant writing due to their demands within small academic teams. Limited collaboration with other sites increased dissatisfaction. In the face of strong commitment to rural ‘places’ and their enthusiasm for improving rural health, fixed-term contracts and limited career progression options were problematic for researchers and their families in continuing in these roles.ConclusionA comprehensive set of strategies is needed to address the sustainability of this field, recognising its value for rural self-determination and health equity. Hubs and networks could enable more cohesively planned, collaborative research, skills sharing, senior academic supervision and career development. Targeted funding, fit to the context and purpose of this field, is urgent. Inaction may fuel regular turnover, starting after a researcher’s first years, losing rich academic theoretical and contextual knowledge that is essential to address the health of rural populations.

Working in social prescribing services: a qualitative study

PurposeSocial prescribing (SP) is an emerging area of public health that has the potential to alleviate pressure on primary care by offering non-clinical solutions to health problems. Whilst there is an increasing body of literature exploring service design and impact, there is little research that focuses specifically on the SP workforce. The purpose of this paper is to explore routes into SP, worker’s experiences of the sector and potential career progression.Design/methodology/approachFor this qualitative study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight members of the SP workforce with varying levels of responsibility from within six different organisations in an urban/suburban area of South West England. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis.FindingsPathways into the sector were varied, and those without direct experience often brought transferable skills from other professions. Careers in SP were clearly rewarding, and some providers had established good support structures for staff. However, some participants were in need of additional training in areas such as collaborative working and staff management. Staff working at a more senior level – particularly in community-based organisations – seemed less well supported overall, with limited career progression. Staff in such organisations also reported working beyond contractual hours.Originality/valueThis study has revealed inconsistencies between the experiences of staff in some community organisations vs those associated with larger, more established services. It has also highlighted a need for further training and capacity building in some areas. These findings may be of interest to those commissioning or funding SP services in the future.

Singaporean nursing students' perceptions of a career in community nursing

The ageing population and the changing disease profile have been driving the demand for community nurses. However, few nursing students in Singapore aspire to have a career in community nursing following graduation. To explore undergraduate nursing students' perceptions of a career in community nursing and to identify strategies to promote community nursing among nursing students. An exploratory qualitative design was used. Four focus group discussions were conducted with a purposive sample of 24 undergraduate nursing students from a university. Interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. Four key themes emerged as follows: 'mid-life career', 'limited career progression', 'a difficult transition' and 'international nurses-dominated workforce'. While most participants rejected a career in community nursing immediately after graduation, they planned to join it at the later stages of their lives to accommodate changing life priorities. Limited career progression and increased difficulty in career transition from community nursing to acute care nursing were identified as deterrent factors in the participants' choices of community nursing as a career. Feelings of marginalization and a lack of role models in community nursing were perceived to be the result of the international nurses-dominated community workforce. Community nursing remains an underrated career. There is a need to foster an optimistic career outlook and mobility in community nursing to entice nursing students into this career track. Strategies to enhance community nursing recruitment should focus on providing more quality and diverse community placement opportunities in various community care settings, implementing a clearly defined career developmental plan to elucidate the role of community nurses, and improving community care and cultural competencies to develop a skilled and diverse community nursing workforce.

PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP – PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD, BOTSWANA

Ponte Academic JournalNov 2019, Volume 75, Issue 11 PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP – PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD, BOTSWANAAuthor(s): DINTLE MOLOSIWA ,Gina TeddyJ. Ponte - Nov 2019 - Volume 75 - Issue 11 doi: 10.21506/j.ponte.2019.11.10 Abstract:Background: Public health management and leadership are widely recognized as paramount to health system performance. This study explores the understanding of public sector managers� knowledge and understanding of healthcare management and leadership as a field of study relevant to strengthening health system. It is intended to provide policy makers and stakeholders with insights on current system performance gaps and help them develop context-fit management and leadership interventions.\r\n\r\nMethods: This study used an exploratory approach that involved in-depth interviews with public sector managers and leaders at central and district level. A total of sixteen managers and leaders were interviewed (5 central level, 11 district level). Data collected from the interviews was transcribed and analysed thematically. \r\n\r\nFindings and Discussion: Thematic analysis of the interview transcripts identified three main themes: limited understanding that healthcare management and leadership is a field of study and profession; limited competencies impacting the performance of managers and leaders and limited career progression; and the ability to manage complexity in the health system. \r\n\r\nConclusion: Public health managers and leaders� limited knowledge and understanding of healthcare management and leadership as a field of study and profession will likely hinder a systematic approach and capacity development for healthcare managers and leaders. Download full text:Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution Username Password

Factors affecting recruitment and retention of nurses who deliver clinical research: A qualitative study.

AimTo provide a better understanding of the factors affecting recruitment and retention of clinical research nurses.DesignQualitative exploratory design.MethodsAn on‐line questionnaire comprising open‐ended and fixed‐choice questions was completed by 121 clinical research nurses. Seven focus groups were held with a subgroup of 26 participants. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis.ResultsParticipants were attracted to a research nurse post by an interest in research itself, a desire for a change or to achieve personal objectives. The majority expected to continue in a research post for the next 5 years, while others expected to move on to research management, a clinical post or retirement; few had ambitions to become an independent researcher. Factors identified in focus groups as leading to intentions to leave research included desire for further change, concern about loss of clinical skills, rebalancing family/work responsibilities, short‐term contracts, unsupportive employers and limited career progression.

Working among the rural communities in Ghana - why doctors choose to engage in rural practice

BackgroundAn unequal distribution of health personnel, leading to unfavourable differences in health status between urban and rural populations, is a serious cause for concern globally. Part of the solution to this problem lies in attracting medical doctors to rural, remote communities, which presents a real challenge. The present study therefore explored the factors that influence medical doctors’ decision to practise in rural Ghana.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study based on questionnaires. Participants were doctors working in health facilities in the districts and rural areas of the Northern Region, Ghana. The qualitative data analysis consisted of an iterative process of open, axial and selective coding.ResultsWe administered the questionnaires to 40 doctors, 27 of whom completed and returned the form, signalling a response rate of 67.5%. The majority of the doctors were male (88.9%) and had been trained at the University for Development Studies, School of Medicine and Health Sciences (UDS-SMHS) (63%). Although they had chosen to work in the remote areas, they identified a number of factors that could prevent future doctors from accepting rural postings, such as: a lack of social amenities, financial and material resources; limited career progression opportunities; and too little emphasis on rural practice in medical school curricula. Moreover, respondents flagged specific stakeholders who, in their opinion, had a major role to play in the attraction of doctors and in convincing them to work in remote areas.ConclusionsThe medical doctors we surveyed had gravitated to the rural areas themselves for the opportunity to acquire clinical skills and gain experience and professional independence. Nevertheless, they felt that in order to attract such cadre of health professionals to rural areas and retain them there, specific challenges needed addressing. For instance, they called for an enforceable, national policy on rural postings, demanding strong political commitment and leadership. Another recommendation flowing from the study findings is to extend the introduction of Community-Based Education and Service (COBES) or similar curriculum components to other medical schools in order to prepare students for rural practice, increasing the likelihood of them accepting rural postings.

Independent or employed? There is a third way. . .

General practice is in crisis. Many posts lie empty and large numbers of older doctors are due to retire soon. The current system is failing, with patients waiting weeks for appointments. Something radical has to be done. Currently we are small groups of self employed doctors with limited career progression, a blank cheque of responsibility, and seeing in excess of 30 patients a day in 10 minute appointments.1 The combination of acute and routine work required means that GPs often finish surgeries then do house calls over lunchtime. Paperwork is done in the margins of the day. Increasing pressure is making general practices dysfunctional, chaotic, unhappy, and lonely places. A sickness absence can …

Moving On? A Growth-Curve Analysis of Occupational Attainment and Career Progression Patterns in West Germany

In this paper, we use multilevel growth-curve analysis to model occupational stratification across West German careers for cohorts born between 1919 and 1971. We argue that a life-course approach gives a more appropriate perspective into social stratification by focusing on the permanence of inequalities across human lives. With data from the German Life History Study (GLHS), our primary interest is in the amount and timing of career progression and the ways in which educational attainment, class background, and cohort context shape them. We confirm previous findings of limited career progression and permanence in occupational inequality. Thus, career mobility can correct for initial disadvantages only to a limited degree. We also confirm the strong role played by the standardized and stratified German educational system, which channels workers into specific occupations with strict boundaries. We find a substantial gross effect of class background, which is strongly mediated by educational attainment for women but not for men. We do not find any general indications of a trend in change across cohorts, although there are some weak indications that men who entered the labor market in the problematic 1970s had weaker career growth. We conclude by discussing the advantages of a life-course approach to occupational stratification and the possibilities of growth-curve analysis to answer pertinent questions in research on careers and occupational mobility.

A cycle of brain gain, waste and drain - a qualitative study of non-EU migrant doctors in Ireland

BackgroundIreland is heavily reliant on non-EU migrant health workers to staff its health system. Shortages of locally trained health workers and policies which facilitate health worker migration have contributed to this trend. This paper provides insight into the experiences of non-EU migrant doctors in the Irish health workforce.MethodIn-depth interviews were conducted with 37 non-EU migrant doctors in Ireland in 2011/2012.ResultsRespondents believed they had been recruited to fill junior hospital doctor ‘service’ posts. These posts are unpopular with locally trained doctors due to the limited career progression they provide. Respondents felt that their hopes for career progression and postgraduate training in Ireland had gone unrealised and that they were becoming de-skilled. As a result, most respondents were actively considering onward migration from Ireland.Discussion & conclusionsFailure to align the expectations of non-EU migrant doctors with the requirements of the health system has resulted in considerable frustration and a cycle of brain gain, waste and drain. The underlying reasons for high mobility into and out of the Irish medical workforce must be addressed if this cycle is to be broken. The heavy reliance on non-EU migrant doctors to staff the medical workforce has distracted from the underlying workforce challenges facing the Irish medical workforce.

How are health professionals earning their living in Malawi?

BackgroundThe migration of health professionals from southern Africa to developed nations is negatively affecting the delivery of health care services in the source countries. Oftentimes however, it is the reasons for the out-migration that have been described in the literature. The work and domestic situations of those health professionals continuing to serve in their posts have not been adequately studied.MethodsThe present study utilized a qualitative data collection and analysis method. This was achieved through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with health professionals and administrators to determine the challenges they face and the coping systems they resort to and the perceptions towards those coping methods.ResultsHealth professionals identified the following as some of the challenges there faced: inequitable and poor remuneration, overwhelming responsibilities with limited resources, lack of a stimulating work environment, inadequate supervision, poor access to continued professionals training, limited career progression, lack of transparent recruitment and discriminatory remuneration. When asked what kept them still working in Malawi when the pressures to emigrate were there, the following were some of the ways the health professionals mentioned as useful for earning extra income to support their families: working in rural areas where life was perceived to be cheaper, working closer to home village so as to run farms, stealing drugs from health facilities, having more than one job, running small to medium scale businesses. Health professionals would also minimize expenditure by missing meals and walking to work.ConclusionMany health professionals in Malawi experience overly challenging environments. In order to survive some are involved in ethically and legally questionable activities such as receiving "gifts" from patients and pilfering drugs. The efforts by the Malawi government and the international community to retain health workers in Malawi are recognized. There is however need to evaluate of these human resources-retaining measures are having the desired effects.