PM/OUR INNOVATIONS
SafeCare-Live helping to ensure efficient staffing levels How an innovative new technology is benefiting staff and service users
McLaughlin, Team Leader on NE Inpatient Unit at Lexden Hospital commented:
“
SafeCare-Live has empowered nurses in charge to make decisions on safe staffing. It allows nurses to have quicker access to real time information and to use this in a meaningful way to support care and treatment. SafeCare-Live puts the patient at the centre for the first time, as staffing decisions are now based on patient acuity needs”
04
HealthRoster Safe
Care HealthRoster Safe gives Nursing HealthRoster SafeCare of staffing levels Directors visibility departments, across wards and maintain safe and allowing them to care based on compliant patient and acuity and patient numbers solution is part of dependency. The day-to-day HealthRoster, enabling the roster to operational changes ng the in real time and facilitati staff across wards redeployment of over-staffing. As to avoid under- or allows more solution the a result, ry personnel efficient use of tempora use of by ensuring the optimum substantive staff.
Key HealthRoster SafeCare
Benefits
of re always aware rsing Directors a • Ensures that Nu ffing levels hey have the correct sta whether or not t re needs rs and patient ca based on patient numbe s across isibility of staffing level • Gives real-time v tient in relation to pa wards and departments ity numbers and acu and gives time to roster changes • Responds in real act on ng changes and the imp visibility of staffi usage of loyments and on patient safety, on redep temporary staff g and makes - or under-staffin • Helps avoid over ve staff ubstanti optimum use of s g patient care by ensurin y of safe • Supports deliver levels on ward staffing appropriate information
re Background HealthRoster SafeCa in NHS and Chief Nurses While Nursing Directors in detail ward staffing levels nd acuity & trusts seek to understa numbers and patient in relation to patient increasing are also coming under rs to be able dependency, they the DoH and regulato pressure from Boards,
Example HPPD Summary
Report
ion. to report the informat reporting audit and staff number The need to satisfy to become even more requirements is expected and, already, the the Francis Report important following information to be Officer expects the Nursing Chief , the CQC is UK’s bi-annually. In addition shared with the DoH tions that do not organisa any on are therefore now focusing publicly standards and that meet essential staffing ate staff numbers. operating with inadequ available been information has Until now, the required the result of Matrons or senior or as via the AUKUH tool and reporting the wards in person nursing staff trawling However, on a periodic basis. lly to to Nursing Directors is purpose-built specifica SafeCare ster managers HealthRo , Matrons and ward support Nursing Directors they are expected to do more in which in an environment
re Capabilities HealthRoster SafeCa tion A purpose-built applica
ster and so is part of HealthRo permanent or The SafeCare solution all nursing staff, whether , Chief takes into account allows Nursing Directors temporary. The solution staff to see whether wards nursing g to patient Nurses and senior are staffed safely accordin agreed and departments ncy and acuity and depende is solution numbers, patient (HPPD) criteria. The hours-per-patient-day Nursing Directors to use the allow including flexible enough to y model they prefer, patient acuity/dependenc AUKUH.
re.com www.allocatesoftwa
thRoster HealthSuite: Heal
In December 2016, SafeCare-Live was piloted in four sites over a three month period. All four sites went ‘live’ in early March 2017. Since then this technology has been rolled out to more sites. SafeCare-Live is now operational within 21 inpatient units and once all are benefitting from the new system HPFT will commence implementation into a specific number of the Trust’s community services.
Care Datasheet
An
innovative new system called SafeCare-Live, which helps with managing workforce levels, is currently being rolled out to inpatient areas across HPFT’s sites. The suggestion to use SafeCare-Live came about after staff shared their ideas for improving services by using technology to support this with HPFT’s Executive Team. Staffing levels are continually reviewed and the numbers of staff required at a particular site may also vary on a daily and sometimes hourly basis dependent upon the needs of service users. Managing these fluctuations and ensuring efficient and effective allocation of staff is a challenging and time consuming process. Using SafeCare-Live enables managers to monitor and manage staffing levels and respond to the changing needs of their service users far more easily as they have access to real time analytical data. For example if SafeCare data shows that one ward is extremely busy on a certain shift and another ward is not as busy, clinical skill can be moved to where it is most needed in real time. Ultimately, this results in a safer and more consistent experience for HPFT’s service users and frontline staff. This is a much more effective and time saving system.