3 minutes with Phillip Gordon: steward and former whistleblower

I provide independent, confidential advice to staff and managers on any aspect of raising and dealing with concerns about safety, malpractice or wrongdoing. I also work with senior management to identify trends, and recommend ways to improve the culture, processes and governance around raising concerns at work. I don’t complete investigations or deal with employment issues, but I can point people in the right direction in these cases. The role is a national requirement for acute trusts. I have direct access to the chief executive, and I am part of a national network that sits under the Care Quality Commission.

 

I am in the unique position of having stand-alone posts in two separate trusts: Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Trust. I work two days a week in each, but am available across the organisations. It challenges my organisational skills, and opens up a lot of opportunities to maximise productivity and shared learning.

 

I am still new to the role and have started from the ground up. I am reviewing the policies and creating a range of resources for guidance.  I have introduced myself to most senior managers and the role has been heavily promoted in both trusts. I am gradually meeting more and more frontline staff, and the role will become more established as concerns come my way. As a result, I am forming a wide perspective on each organisation, and using that to recommend improvements.

 

I have worked as a physio for seven years across many trusts and clinical areas. I have also completed some postgraduate academic work looking into the barriers people face when raising concerns in the NHS. Most importantly, I have personally ‘blown the whistle’ in two previous roles. I took that step after I became concerned about the welfare of patients and the standard of care they were receiving.  I know how it feels to have a serious concern, and how daunting and isolating it can be if you are considering raising it. When it goes right, I have seen how the comments of just one person can lead to profound and lasting improvements.  

 

Dealing with disciplinaries and grievances teaches you how to handle conflict situations. I had to become very good at managing my time flexibly and responsively.  In a previous role, I was heavily involved in a large consultation, which proposed the removal of band 7 physios from intensive care, stroke and neuro-rehabilitation. CSP members voiced their concerns and put forward alternative proposals that demonstrated better quality, safety and cost-effectiveness, which were universally adopted by management. I also introduced trust-wide compensatory rest arrangements to minimise the likelihood of fatigue-related incidents. I now sit on the CSP’s industrial relations committee.

 

All these experiences have taught me how to be a critical friend to management, yet work positively and constructively to get things done. My role is an example of the unexpected places that physiotherapy can take you.

 

The role requires a lot of resilience, but so does being a clinician or a CSP steward in the NHS. There are many places I can go to for support including my line manager, the chief executive, or a board member/non-executive director. I also have access to other Freedom to Speak Up Guardians, and am supported by the National Guardian Office. 

 

I try to keep my work and personal life separate. My main hobbies are eating cake, indoor bouldering and playing the piano – ideally not in that order! fl