How to help stretched NHS... yoga breaks at work

DOCTORS and nurses are being given ‘yoga breaks’ during their working day to help them de-stress.

The free 20-minute classes are led by a yoga instructor and take place near wards to make it easy for staff to take part.

The scheme has been set up by hospital bosses to keep staff ‘fit, refreshed and focused’ amid chronic strain on the NHS workforce.

The ‘Take20’ sessions take place in the emergency department and at wards and theatres at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and are offered to all ward staff.

Those taking part carry out ‘breathing exercises, stretches and guided meditation’ in order to ‘deeply relax, refresh and energise’. Staff are allowed the yoga breaks in addition to their rest breaks.

Yoga is said to improve strength, flexibility and balance as well as lower stress.

The number of days lost to stress among NHS staff in Scotland is rising. In 2015, a total of 287,630 days were lost, compared with just over 237,000 two years earlier.

A summary of the scheme, published by NHS Lothian, states: ‘Despite the challenges, we have shown that yoga can be successfully integrated into even the busiest of clinical settings, with staff reporting positive results.’

A trial, asking staff about their stress levels before and after the sessions, showed a ‘significant difference’, with average stress levels lower afterwards.

Inga Cosway, senior health promotion specialist and healthy working lives coordinator at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, said: ‘Our aim is that staff feel supported, valued and better-equipped to face the demands brought about in these challenging times by promoting positive mental wellbeing and increased resilience.

‘The initiatives have been successfully integrated, with staff reporting positive results.’

Professor Alex McMahon, director of nursing at NHS Lothian, said the sessions ‘help keep staff fit, refreshed and focused, especially during long, demanding shifts’.

But John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘No one denies that staff are working hard but offering them yoga classes in the middle of shifts seems excessive.’

Royal College of Nursing Scotland director Theresa Fyffe said ‘We welcome initiatives that encourage nurses to take time out from the pressures on the ward and de-stress.’