Ms Jacqui Cousins1, Ms Lyndall Turvey2, Ms Angela MacDonald3
1Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District/NSW Health, Bulli, Australia, 2Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District/NSW Health, Bulli, Australia, 3Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District/NSW Health, Wollongong, Australia
Biography:
Angela MacDonald, Lyndall Turvey and Jacqui Cousins are all Social Workers with a background in Acute Care, Rehabilitation and Aged Care. At the time of the Safe Service Capacity Project, Angela was the Team Leader for the Shellharbour Hospital Social Work Department and Lyndall and Jacqui job-shared the Unit Head role for Southern Illawarra Hospital Group. This project was definitely a team effort and sharing the work of driving the project helped to sustain progress.
Abstract:
In a regional hospital with 91 Acute beds, 22 ED beds and the potential for 18 surge beds, and a Social Work department with 3.53 FTE, increasing demand and complexity of referrals significantly impacted the team’s capacity to deliver value-based care and maintain a safe service capacity, resulting in risks to staff wellbeing and retention. In order to maintain reasonable workload parameters, the team proposed to prioritise high-value activity (work requiring specific Social Work knowledge and skills) and de-prioritise or delegate low-value activity (work requiring a more generic skill-base, or generated due to poor processes). Strategies were identified around managing 3 specific low-value activities, and endorsed by the General Manager:
– Referrals with insufficient information to enable triage – education to Medical and Nursing staff re. appropriate Social Work referrals. Social Work will decline referrals with insufficient information.
– Organising Family Meetings, where there is no significant conflict/complexity and SW not previously involved. A flowchart was developed to support Ward Clerks to arrange.
– Residential Aged Care Facility (RACF) pathway discussions, where there is no complexity, patients are agreeable, and SW not previously involved. Staff already involved to conduct discussions e.g. Nursing Discharge Planner or NUMs.
Through a process of stakeholder engagement and collaboration, these three strategies were successfully implemented resulting in increased Social Work wellbeing, development of more efficient processes, increased multi-disciplinary collaboration, and improved understanding and value of the Social Work role. The high-value/low-value activity framework also provided a tool for Social Workers to prioritise their own workloads.