Reducing The Use Of Agency Staff Staff Will Be

reducing the use of agency staff staff will be aware that st george’s healthcare is looking to make savings of £55 million during 2011/12.

Reducing the use of agency staff
Staff will be aware that St George’s Healthcare is looking to make
savings of £55 million during 2011/12.
The trust has set out plans for meeting and managing eight cost
reduction programme work streams and staff are currently working hard
to develop these. A large part of meeting our £55 million savings
target will be reducing the amount of money the trust spends on
temporary agency staff. Therefore, agency usage will be monitored very
closely over the coming months to ensure that it is kept to a minimum.
To help reduce cost pressures for staffing, the trust has already
introduced a freeze on new posts. Reducing agency spend is a key
factor in the trust’s cost reduction plans so the use of agency staff
must always be viewed as a last resort.
Where there is a need for temporary workers to cover vacant posts,
managers should always consider bank staff in the first instance.
Where this is not possible, for instance when covering staff groups
not registered with the bank, agency use must be authorised by the
appropriate manager, as follows:
Hospital nursing staff
All requests for agency staff to cover hospital nursing posts should
be referred to the divisional director of nursing (or their designated
head of nursing) in hours. For authorisation out-of-hours:
*
Midwifery – contact the midwifery manager on call
*
Paediatrics – the 6448 bleep holder should contact the head of
nursing on bleep 6007
*
Adult inpatient areas – contact the head of nursing on bleep 6007
All matrons should refer to the trust’s safe staffing policy on the
intranet for guidance on managing staff levels.
Community services staff
Agency staff cover for community services can only be used with the
authority of the associate chief operating officer for the service. Di
Caulfeild-Stoker has sent separate information to community service
division managers confirming these arrangements.
Medical staff
For medical staff, cover should first be sought internally, either by
asking other doctors not on duty if they are able to cover, or by
combining rotas. If this is not possible, and it is essential for
clinical safety to fill the post, the divisional director should be
contacted to authorise cover via an approved agency in hours. The
on-call director should be called out-of-hours.
Admin/clerical staff
An HR1 form must be signed off for all bookings with authorisation by
the divisional director of operations, associate divisional director
of operations or corporate director, or deputy in non-clinical areas,
as appropriate.
More information is outlined in the trust’s bank and agency approval
process on the intranet.