Abstract
BackgroundModern healthcare managers are faced with pressure to deliver effective, efficient services within the context of fixed budget constraints. Managers are required to make decisions regarding the skill mix of the workforce particularly when staffing new services. One measure used to identify numbers and mix of staff in healthcare settings is workforce ratio. The aim of this study was to identify workforce ratios in nine allied health professions and to identify whether these measures are useful for planning allied health workforce requirements.MethodsA systematic literature search using relevant MeSH headings of business, medical and allied health databases and relevant grey literature for the period 2000-2008 was undertaken.ResultsTwelve articles were identified which described the use of workforce ratios in allied health services. Only one of these was a staffing ratio linked to clinical outcomes. The most comprehensive measures were identified in rehabilitation medicine.ConclusionThe evidence for use of staffing ratios for allied health practitioners is scarce and lags behind the fields of nursing and medicine.
Highlights
Modern healthcare managers are faced with pressure to deliver effective, efficient services within the context of fixed budget constraints
Where the Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) paper was of a four month trial over the winter period, the Henley paper describes the experiences of three diverse, ongoing, Medical Assessment and Planning Units (MAPUs)
This review aimed to find out if allied health workforce ratios existed and if these ratios could be used in allied health service planning
Summary
Modern healthcare managers are faced with pressure to deliver effective, efficient services within the context of fixed budget constraints. Managers are required to make decisions regarding the skill mix of the workforce when staffing new services. One measure used to identify numbers and mix of staff in healthcare settings is workforce ratio. As health care increasingly relies on expensive technologies and drugs, governments are under mounting pressure to find ways to contain costs. The Australian Productivity Commission recently identified under-utilisation of the professional competencies of staff as an area of concern for the Australian health workforce [10]. When introducing new services and reviewing current service delivery models, managers must make decisions on what constitutes appropriate levels of staffing. Different methods such as ratios; where staff are provided in a
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