A report commissioned by the DWP found that 52 per cent of health assessors left the role in a year, with many leaving the profession altogether
Health professionals responsible for evaluating individuals for disability benefits are abandoning the sector en masse due to feelings of being ‘despised’ and ‘de-skilled’, research from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has confirmed.
In a recently-published report, the department reveals that more than half (52 per cent) of its health assessors departed in a single year, with 40 per cent of new hires quitting during the three-month training programme.
The study, which examines assessors for both the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and the health-related component of Universal Credit, was conducted in Spring 2022, with conclusions drawn from 2021 data.
Both evaluations have long faced criticism from disability rights advocates as challenging and unreliable procedures. According to surveys by disability charity Sense, more than half (51 per cent) of disabled people with complex requirements report feeling humiliated by their PIP assessment.
A further 45 per cent stated the process worsened their symptoms. Assessors must be qualified healthcare practitioners. One informed researchers: “We all got in healthcare for altruistic reasons and that maybe isn’t the case in this job… you’re a cog in the machine doing bureaucratic work.”
Many do not seek the position until there is “no other option but to leave the NHS”, the report discovers, but then feel that they have moved from a role in which they are “respected” to one where they are “despised”. The report said: “In fact the HDAs may see themselves as transitioning from a role where they are high respected to one where they are despised (or at the very least, stigmatised).”
The report said: “An average of 4.3% of assessors left the occupation each month throughout 2021; in annual terms, this is equivalent to an attrition rate of 52%. Approximately, 40% of new recruits also leave during the training period. Due to these levels of attrition, very high recruitment levels are required to maintain the workforce required to meet assessment targets (for instance, between 2,000 and 3,000 FTE assessors per year, which is approximately 60% to 90% the size of the HDA (Health Disability Assessor) workforce at the time of writing).”
A senior DWP stakeholder said: “I think we do find that people predominantly find this role very, very tough and they’ve got to be a certain kind of robust person.”
Healthcare Professionals (HCPs) working with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in the UK play a critical, non-clinical role in evaluating how health conditions or disabilities affect a claimant’s daily life, primarily to support benefit entitlement decisions.
On the issue of training the DWP said: “However, there is an acknowledgement that a high proportion of HCPs do not make it through the training process or, where they do, do not stay in post very long. The qualitative research suggests that there is an expectation that most HDAs (Disability Assessors) will leave their role within just 2 to 3 years.”
In terms of applicants from HealthCare Professionals one recruiter said: “You see two brackets of [HCPs] who apply: ones in busy hospital environments who are totally burnt out and the other bracket is the ones who want to work from home…the second one is about more flexibility – it’s all about work/life balance.”Also many from health return because it’s what they want to do: “Some leave because, you know, their heart, actually they realise their heart belongs back in whatever they were doing before.”
At a PIP assessment, an evaluator will assign applicants points according to how restricted their capacity is to perform everyday living tasks, which determines the amount of their final payment.
The evaluation for the health-related component of Universal Credit is termed the ‘work capability assessment’, where the examiner is instead establishing the claimant’s capacity to undertake employment or work-related activities (such as interviews and training).
A DWP contract manager explains the difficulties many assessors encounter as former healthcare professionals, stating: “The idea that they would want to be on a treadmill of collecting details but not intervening is alien to a significant proportion of the health sector.”
A DWP spokesperson said: “We commissioned this research to better understand the challenges facing the health assessment workforce and have been acting on its findings since it was conducted.”
“We’ve worked closely with our assessment providers to improve recruitment, training and working conditions, and the full-time equivalent health assessor workforce has grown since this research was carried out.
“We’re committed to ensuring assessments are carried out by skilled professionals who are properly supported in their roles, and we continue to work on improvements as part of our wider transformation of health assessment services.”
To read the report click here.
