To support workforce retention and wellbeing, a new web app is being co-produced to support and improve both organisational and personal emotional resilience across the BLMK health and care partnership. The iSORT (integrated systemic organisational resilience toolkit) is being co-developed by the BLMK integrated research and innovation hub based at the University of Bedfordshire and Research in Practice. Developing resilience is crucial to reducing burnout and stress and increasing job satisfaction to improve retention in the caring professions.

The iSORT aims to promote a systemic, multi-level approach to building resilience by helping organisations develop a culture that supports resilience among their employees. In the first phase of development, the app will focus on organisations and will enable organisational leaders to identify employees' perceptions of how their organisation is meeting key standards, taking a bespoke approach to identifying the tools and resources required to support workforce strategies. Phase two of development, will provide individuals working in integrated health and social care with an accessible, research informed diagnostic tool and associated workbook to understand, build and sustain individual resilience and wellbeing.

The iSORT builds on an existing framework for assessing and supporting organisational resilience within health and social care. This framework was developed by Dr Louise Grant and Professor Gail Kinman in partnership Research in Practice, known as the Social Work Organisational Resilience Diagnostic (SWORD) Change Project. Building on the SWORD, the Social Care Health and Organisational Resilience Diagnostic (SCHORD) [PDF] was commissioned by Health Education England (HEE) and Buckinghamshire Health and Social Care Academy.

The iSORT will be freely available to organisations across BLMK, Buckinghamshire Health and Social Care Academy and Research in Practice members.

To hear more information about the iSORT or get involved with its development, please contact Dr Lisa Bostock, Principal Research Fellow, BLMK R&I hub, at lisa.bostock@beds.ac.uk