Directors of North Cumbria Integrated Care met at the Cumberland Infirmary on Wednesday, making key decisions about the NHS trust’s services.
NCIC is responsible for acute services in the area including West Cumberland Hospital and the Cumberland Infirmary.
Directors received a report from Jordanne McMullan Lead Freedom to Speak-Up Guardian on her work within the trust.
Jordanne McMullan, Lead Freedom to Speak-Up Guardian at North Cumbria Integrated Care(Image: NCIC)
Freedom to Speak-Up (FTSU) is a scheme that encourages NHS staff to raise concerns or ask for support if they need it.
The board were presented with the team’s figures from April to June (quarter one of 2025/26).
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Ms McMullan also shed some light on the issues raised so far in quarter two (July to September 30) which included more reports of racism than previously.
She said: “Throughout quarter one, we’ve continued to see an increase in speaking-up.”
The Cumberland Infirmary Hospital in Carlisle(Image: Archive)
The “intensity” of reports has also increased during that period.
Ms McMullan said: “We’ve received a lot more in relation to patient safety and quality, which I think is positive, it’s not necessarily that those issues weren’t there it’s just that there’s a confidence in being able to voice them.”
Quarter one of 2025/26 brought 44 new Freedom to Speak-Up cases and 19 were closed within the quarter.
A stock image of a busy hospital ward.(Image: Unsplash)
Speak-up reports involving bullying and harassment overall dropped to eight in the first quarter of this financial year, from 15 in the final quarter of 2024/25.
However, Ms McMullan said: “One thing that’s happening this quarter, and I think it’s a result of what’s in the news, we’re getting an increase in reports around racism.
“We’re doing a lot of work in the background to action those.”
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The NCIC has reached out to regional colleagues “to try and get an indication on what action’s happening, what good practice there is from a regional perspective and what we can do to improve.”
Ms McMullan said: “We’re trying to look at both elements, from an organisational perspective but also, making sure that individuals that are experiencing the racist comments have that wrap around care.”
The FTSU team are encouraging Emergency Care staff to speak-up as reporting has been low, despite a staff survey revealing that 77 per cent of them are subjected to bullying and harassment from patients.