The small wards tool is part of the suite of tools available to help NHS Scotland services plan the number of staff they need.
The tool
The small wards tool is for use in adult inpatient wards where the number of occupied beds is 16 or less. It allows users to record data on bed occupancy and patient dependency.
Please note:
- If the occupied beds are usually 17 or more you should use the Adult inpatient tool.
- This tool is not for use in mental health settings or critical/ intensive care wards.
The tool provides weekly nursing rWTE (recommended whole time equivalent). However, the set up on SSTS allows rosters to change number of days and hours to reflect when the service is open. This means the rWTE obtained would be for that specific local combination of hours and days.
How to use this tool
Use this tool alongside the Professional judgement (PJ) tool.
The current national recommendation is to run the tools for a two-week period, at least once per year.
Use the data capture template from the table below to record information. This data can then be uploaded onto the SSTS platform.
Use the outputs from the tools, 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 small wards tool. They provide detailed information from how to log in to how to gather 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 Step by step guide to background of small wards 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 Small wards user guide (PDF, 2006K) | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for User guide on using the small wards tool |
| Resource Small wards data capture template (PDF, 591K) | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable data capture template |
| 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 Quality assurance checklist (PDF 538K) | Source Healthcare Improvement Scotland | What it is and what it is for Printable checklist to aid tool run preparation and delivery |
| Resource | Source NHS Lanarkshire | What it is and what it is for Example of reporting template which looks at each component of the CSM |