The Professional judgement (PJ) tool supports nursing and midwifery workload and workforce planning.
The tool
The PJ tool records the professional opinion of the user on the required staffing for the service area, during a particular timeframe. This is the number, and skill mix of staff needed to carry out the workload safely and effectively.
This tool allows for an explanation of staffing numbers given. For example, when they differ from normal staffing levels.
How to use this tool
Use this tool alongside the relevant specialty specific tool for your area. The current national recommendation is to run the tools for a two-week period, at least once per year.
Use the outputs from the PJ tool, as part of the Common Staffing Method (CSM), to inform safe and effective staffing for your service.
The following video guides and documents provide information on completing the PJ tool. They provide detailed information from how to log in to how to finalise and submit data.
Resources to support you
| Resource | Source | What it is and what it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for A guide to help you assess the skill mix within your teams |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Step by step guide to background of Professional judgement tool and data collection |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Step by step guide to uploading data onto SSTS platform |
| Resource Professional judgement tool user guide (PDF, 2.4MB) | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for User guide on using the Professional judgement tool |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable data capture template |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable data capture template for use by Emergency department nursing teams |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable data capture template for use by emergency department medical teams |
| Resource | Source TURAS | What it is and what it is for A variety of learning resources to support understanding workload and workforce planning and the application of the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 |
| Resource | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable checklist to aid tool run preparation and delivery |