Nursing

We have examined workforce planning practices for nurses and Healthcare Assistants in many hospital settings. In particular, we have looked at the relationships between skill mix, shift patterns, rostering techniques and nurse to patient ratios. These variables affect each other. And they alter the cost and risk.

To work out the right number of nurses, wards have to match the people to the workload, with an eye on the risks. But risks can change almost hour by hour. When they do, managers do not always make good decisions. The instant reaction may be to call in more nurses. This increases costs, but is not always necessary.

To control costs without compromising safety, we help hospitals

• to standardise the ground rules
• to confirm clinical and financial accountabilities
• to manage the quality of the workforce and
• to set up reporting systems.

Please contact us to find out more.