Nicki Morle Nursing Manager University of Bristol Students’ Health Service Skill mix…..a work in progress?

“If the NHS wants to improve patient care, it should see healthcare assistants as a critical, strategic resource, yet many HCAs feel undervalued and overlooked” Camilla Cavendish c

What is skill mix? A combination of skills available at a specific time A mix of posts in a given facility A mix of employees in a post A combination of activities that comprises each role 3

What is skill mix? Differences across occupational groups such as nurses and physicians or between various sectors of the health systemnursesphysicians A mix within an occupational group such as between different types of nursing providers with different level of training and different wage rates 3

“We want the right staff, with the right skills, in the right place at the right time. There is no single ratio or formula that can calculate the answers to such complex questions ”4 Jane Cummings Chief Nursing Officer for England

“ There is good evidence that happy, well motivated staff deliver better care and that their patients have better outcomes.” NHS

Group Work

Look at your own teams with a new perspective How can skill mix help our practice? Action points to take away Learning Outcomes

No one size fits all Be creative Support from all the clinical team is essential Appropriate training supervision and support Accountability and Delegation Areas to Consider

Our Story Julie Budd, Ian Bailey Health Care Assistants University of Bristol Students' Health Service

Summary Valuing your team members and investing in them can achieve positive benefits for the individuals, the team as a whole and on the quality of patient care including: Patient satisfaction Staff recruitment and retention Maximize use of resources Value for money

1. The Cavendish review: an independent review into healthcare assistants and support workers, Camilla Cavendish, Department of Health, (July 2013) 2. (accessed June 2014) 3. Buchan & O’May Determining skill mix Human resources Development Journal Vol 4 issue 2 (2000) 4. Compassion in Practice, NHS England (2012). 5. RCN First Steps programme accessed June 2014) References

Any Questions?

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” Leo Bascaglia