Safe Staffing
Providing safe high quality care is our highest priority and we have a number of mechanisms in place to make sure our wards are safely staffed, we look at the reported incidents, feedback we receive from you and from the staff who work within the trust. We also have a display on each ward of the staffing levels; the display shows who is in charge of the ward and how many staff are planned to be on duty as well as the actual numbers on duty.
In addition, from June 2014 all hospitals are required to publish information about the number of nurses and support workers per shift, together with the percentage of shifts meeting safe staffing guidelines. This information does not include other staff such as Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and Psychologists (Allied Health Professionals); in the types of wards within Solent NHS Trust have a large number of Allied Health Professionals delivering care, therapy and support to our patients, so the number of staff present on each ward will be higher than the number displayed in the data.
This initiative is part of the NHS response to the Francis Report which called for greater openness and transparency in the health service.
In line with a document from NHS England called 'How to ensure the right people, with the right skills, are in the right place at the right time: A guide to nursing, midwifery and care staffing capacity and capability' the Trust will formally review staffing every six months. Our Board will also receive a monthly report including information about those wards where actual staffing numbers do not meet planned levels.
For further information about staffing levels please contact:
Angela Anderson, Associate Director Professional Standards & Regulation