Workload Measurement Tool Research Articles

Relationship Between Physical Workload, Work Fatigue, and Drinking Water Consumption to Work Productivity of Brickmakers

Background: Work productivity is the ability of the workforce to produce several goods per unit of time. Several factors, such as physical workload, work fatigue, and drinking water consumption, can cause high or low levels of work productivity. Method: This research was conducted in a brick-making business in Kaligayam Village, Tegal Regency, in August 2022 using an analytic observational research method and a cross-sectional approach. The sample in the study consisted of 42 workers and was analyzed using the Chi-Square Test with a confidence level of 95%. The instruments in this study were questionnaires to determine drinking water consumption and work productivity, as well as a physical workload measurement tool, namely the oximeter, and a work fatigue measurement tool, namely the reaction timer. Results: The physical workload (OR= 0.133; CI= 0.032-0.563; p<0.05), work fatigue (OR = 0.195; CI = 0.042-0.914; p<0.05), drinking water consumption (OR = 11.250; CI = 2.100-60.267; p<0.05) had a relationship to work productivity. Conclusion: There is a relationship between the variables of physical workload, work fatigue, and drinking water consumption on the work productivity of brickmakers. Elderly workers should do work with a light workload, workers can rest for 30 minutes every 4 hours of work, make the most of their rest time, and there is a need for workers' self-awareness to consume fluids according to NIOSH rules with a total of ≥6 liters per day.

Workload Measurement in Subspecialty Placental Pathology in Canada.

Workload measurement is important to help determine optimal staffing and workload distribution for pathology laboratories. The Level 4 Equivalent (L4E) System is the most widely used Anatomical Pathology (AP) workload measurement tool in Canada. However, it was initially not developed with subspecialties in mind. In 2016, a Pan-Canadian Pediatric-Perinatal Pathology Workload Committee (PCPPPWC) was organized to adapt the L4E System to assess Pediatric-Perinatal Pathology workload. Four working groups were formed. The Placental Pathology Working Group was tasked to develop a scheme for fair valuation of placental specimens signed out by subspecialists in the context of the L4E System. Previous experience, informal time and motion studies, a survey of Canadian Pediatric-Perinatal Pathologists, and interviews of Pathologists' Assistants (PA) informed the development of such scheme. A workload measurement scheme with average L4E workload values for examination and reporting of singleton and multiple gestation placentas was proposed. The proposal was approved by the Canadian Association of Pathologist - Association canadienne des pathologistes Workload and Human Resources Committee for adoption into the L4E System. The development of a workload measurement model for placental specimens provides an average and fair valuation of these specimen types, enabling its use for resource planning and workload distribution.

Analysis of midwives' situation and the need to measure their workloads.

to analyze midwives' employment situation of midwives and detect their workload measurement needs. a mixed methodology (quantitative and qualitative), observational, descriptive and cross-sectional study. Two phases were carried out. The first methodological phase consisted of conducting semi-structured individual interviews. The second methodological phase analyzed the Nursing Intervention Classification (NIC) interventions that midwives perform in the labor room during daily practice. 90.3% of midwives have work overload, since for 80.6% the midwife-pregnant mother ratio is not well established, since the mean execution time of a Nursing Intervention Classification (NIC) intervention is 20 minutes. For this reason, 100% of the sample considers the development of workload measurement tools to be highly useful. the need to generate an instrument that considers the diversity of Nursing Intervention Classification (NIC) interventions that develop within the labor room is ratified.

Outcome Measurement – Developing standardized advanced practice workload measurement tools across the province with workload codes

Purposes: Communities of Practice (CoP) group people of common concerns & problems to deepen their knowledge by interacting on an ongoing basis. In 2015 the clinical specialist radiation therapists (CSRTs) in Ontario formed a CoP with Ontario Health (formerly Cancer Care Ontario) to promote knowledge creation & exchange, ultimately to sustain these advanced practice (AP) positions. The CoP formed a working group (WG) to develop a standard AP code set aimed to measure AP clinical and technical work carried out by all CSRTs in their respective cancer centers.

Case Manager Work and Workload: Uncovering a Wicked Problem—A Secondary Analysis Using Interpretive Description

Canada’s population is aging, and by 2027, it is expected that 22 million people will be older than 65 years. Home care services were used by 2.2 million individuals, or 8% of Canadians 15 years of age and older in 2012. Home care programs are continually expanding to meet the needs of the growing number of clients, and goals include keeping people in their homes for as long as possible, delaying the need for institutional care, and maintaining quality of life. Case managers are the gatekeepers to home care in Canada. They collaborate with families to plan care, coordinate home care services and community supports, as well as monitor client progress and evaluate outcomes. The aim of our study was to conduct a qualitative secondary analysis to understand the factors that influence case manager work and workload in home care. We completed a secondary analysis of four data sets from four primary studies of related concepts that occurred between 2006 and 2013. Our study design was inductively driven using the tenets of interpretive description. Case managers’ work and workloads are messy and affected by interrelated complex structures of home care programs within health care systems. The concept of a wicked problem, which describes a problem that is complex and intractable, is a useful construct we use to gain some clarity around the work and workload problems that case managers face. Case managers aim to make a positive difference in their client’s lives, but are constantly dealing with change, and can experience feelings of being their client’s last resort with the resulting pressure ultimately impacting their workload. In addition, case managers reported health system failures, including a lack of capacity and structural integration within home care programs that increase their work and workload. Case manager work and workload requires further research including the development and refinement of accurate workload measurement tools that consider the multiple aspects of professional responsibilities and case management activities. Workload and workload measurement tools are needed to account for the unplanned and unpredictable nature of case management work and assist with the distribution of more equitable caseloads among case managers and home care teams.

Outcome Measurement: Developing Standardized Advanced Practice Workload Measurement Tools Across the Province With Workload Codes

The Clinical Specialist Radiation Therapist (CSRT) pilot project ran in Ontario from 2007-2016. During the period, individual and summative reports were generated to document the impact of CSRTs in the health care system. As the pilot project concluded and CSRT positions sustained, the CSRT Community of Practice (CoP) group recognized the need to continuously capture workloads of CSRTs across the province to provide data for senior management to assess impact and value of CSRTs in the health system. Therefore, the CSRT CoP created a working group to develop new workload codes to capture advanced practice workload. The workgroup sent out request to all CSRTs in the province to collect all the new codes the CSRT deemed necessary to capture their advanced practice activities. The group then reviewed all the new codes, grouped similar requests and compared to the existing provincial workload codes for duplication and differentiation to generate a master list. The master list is then mapped against the CSRT core competence profile to classify different advanced practice activities into different categories. At the first phase of code development, a list of new codes reflecting the CSRT advanced practice core competency and common to most CSRTs across the province is developed. The new codes will be able to standardize the workload measurement of CSRTs in different cancer centers. The standardized codes also allow provincial leadership to analyze the impact and contribution of CSRTs in the health care system and make informed decisions on future strategic plans. The CSRT CoP developed standardized workload codes to measure advanced practice activities and will obtain approval to use the codes from cancer centers in the province. The CSRT CoP will continue to assess the use of the codes and to refine its completeness. As the CSRT positions evolve and new positions developed, the CoP will adapt and/or introduce new codes as needed.

RN? Registered or rubber nurse?

This paper, as part of a larger critical ethnographic doctoral study, describes the influence of workplace regulation, nursing culture and a lack of role boundaries on nursing workload. Nursing workload is of keen interest in a climate where shortages of staff and limited funding constrain the number of registered nurses available to provide direct clinical care. Contemporary nursing work is subject to ‘measurement’ using a raft of workload measurement tools which qualify and quantify a range of tasks which nurses perform. However, such tools do not recognise the ‘other’ work which nurses do related to workplace culture and climate.

Assessing the adequacy of workload measurement tools using a quality-based methodology.

determine which tool (NEMS and NAS) is most suitable for use in intensive care units using a quality-based methodology. after identifying the opportunity for improvement "Inadequacy of the NEMS for determining nursing workload in the intensive care unit (ICU)", we assessed the NEMS and the NAS, as a proposed improvement to the NEMS, using quality improvement cycles methodology based on the following criteria: measurement of daily nursing workload on a daily and shift basis; the tool encompasses all nursing activities undertaken in the ICU; and workload assessed per patient and unit. there was no significant difference in level of compliance for the NEMS (67%). The comparison NEMS-NAS showed that there was a statistically significant improvement for all criteria except criterion 1. The NEMS only assesses criterion 1 (64.22%); while the NAS assessed all four criteria, obtaining a compliance rate of 64.74% for criteria 1, 2, and 4, and 100% for criterion 3. the NAS is more suitable for measuring nursing workload in UCIs.

Using workload measurement tools in diverse care contexts: the experience of staff in mental health and learning disability inpatient settings.

What is known on the subject? Difficulties with the recruitment and retention of qualified nursing staff have resulted in nursing shortages worldwide with a consequential impact on the quality of care. It is increasingly recommended that evidence-based staffing levels are central to the development of workforce plans. Due to a paucity of empirical research in mental health and learning disability services the staffing needs and requirements for these settings are undefined and the availability of tools to aid staffing decisions is limited. What this paper adds to existing knowledge? This paper provides a valuable insight into the practical uses of these tools as perceived by staff members with day-to-day experience of the requirements of mental health and learning disability wards. It reveals that while workload measurement tools are considered a valuable aid for the development of workforce plans, they are limited in their ability to capture all aspects of care provision in these settings. It further emphasizes the inapplicability of a one-shoe-fits-all approach for determining nurse staffing levels and the need for individual and customized workforce plans. What are the implications for practice? This study demonstrates that the development of tools for use in mental health and learning disability services is in its infancy, yet no tool that has been validated as such. It highlights the potential for workload measurement tools to aid staffing decisions; however, a more holistic approach that considers additional factors is needed to ensure robust workforce planning models are developed for these services. The critical challenge of determining the correct level and skill mix of nursing staff required to deliver safe and effective health care has become an international concern. It is recommended that evidence-based staffing decisions are central to the development of future workforce plans. Workforce planning in mental health and learning disability nursing is largely under-researched with few tools available to aid the development of evidence-based staffing levels in these environments. It was the aim of this study to explore the experience of staff using the Safer Nursing Care Tool and the Mental Health and Learning Disability Workload Tool in mental health and learning disability environments. Following a 4-week trial period of both tools, a survey was distributed via Qualtrics online survey software to staff members who used the tools during this time. The results of the survey revealed that the tools were considered a useful resource to aid staffing decisions; however, specific criticisms were highlighted regarding their suitability to psychiatric intensive care units and learning disability wards. This study highlights that further development of workload measurement tools is required to support the implementation of effective workforce planning strategies within mental health and learning disability services. With increasing fiscal pressures, the need to provide cost-effective care is paramount within the services of the National Health Service. Evidence-based workforce planning is therefore necessary to ensure that appropriate levels of staff are determined. This is of particular importance within mental health and learning disability services due to the reduction in the number of available beds and an increasing focus on purposeful admission and discharge.

Considerations For Using Subjective Mental Workload Measures In Populations With Cognitive Deficits

Mental workload measurement has been a traditional and well-used method in human factors for over 50 years and continues to be highly relevant today. It has been applied to a variety of fields, including healthcare, though subjects have been clinicians rather than patients. Subjective mental workload measures are based on the assumptions that subjects can report self-functioning (i.e. persons with complete cognitive functioning). Thus, if subjective mental workload is applied to a population of persons with limited and / or dynamically changing cognitive functioning, then the basic assumptions of subjective mental workload are violated. This paper explores the considerations for incorporating subjective mental workload measurement tools into rehabilitative practices for cognitive deficits, such as traumatic brain injury and stroke patients.

Development and early application of the Scottish Community Nursing Workload Measurement Tool

This article describes the development and early application of the Scottish Community Nursing Workload Measurement Tool, part of a suite of tools aiming to ensure a consistent approach to measuring nursing workload across NHS Scotland. The tool, which enables community nurses to record and report their actual workload by collecting information on six categories of activity, is now being used by all NHS boards as part of a triangulated approach. Data being generated by the tool at national level include indications that approximately 50% of band 6 district nurses' time is spent in face-to-face and non-face-to-face contact and planned sessions with patients, and that over 60% of face-to-face contacts are at 'moderate' and 'complex' levels of intervention (2012 data). These data are providing hard evidence of key elements of community nursing activity and practice that will enable informed decisions about workforce planning to be taken forward locally and nationally. The article features an account of the early impact of the tool's implementation in an NHS board by an associate director of nursing. Positive effects from implementation include the generation of reliable data to inform planning decisions, identification of issues around nursing time spent on administrative tasks, clarification of school nursing roles, and information being fed back to teams on various aspects of performance.

Change Fatigue in Health Care Professionals--An Issue of Workload or Human Factors Engineering?

In the demanding and fast-paced world of health care, it is not uncommon for nurses and other health care professionals to have days where they are pushed to their limits. Despite these pressures, each year, new initiatives and practice recommendations are shared within organizations that the nurses must learn, embrace, and include in their practice. Each new initiative can be additive to the nurse's workload; most changes are not time neutral but require staff to expend an allotment of time from their day to complete. In our efforts to adopt new recommendations, is it realistic or possible to add on to workload and stretched resources in an ongoing manner? The following article provides an overview of how issues such as change fatigue and increased workload need to be addressed. Through use of workload measurement tools and guidance by the principles of human factors engineering, we can better support the provision of optimal patient care in a demanding environment.

Measuring the nursing workload per shift in the ICU

In the intensive care unit (ICU) different strategies and workload measurement tools exist to indicate the number of nurses needed. The gathered information is always focused on manpower needed per 24 h. However, a day consists of several shifts, which may be unequal in nursing workload. The aim of this study was to evaluate if differences in nursing workload between consecutive shifts can be identified by a nursing workload measurement tool. The nursing activities score (NAS) was registered per patient for every shift during a 4-week period in a prospective, observational research project in the surgical-pediatric ICU (SICU-PICU) and medical ICU (MICU) of an academic hospital. The NAS was influenced by the patient characteristics and the type of shift. Furthermore, the scores were lower during night shifts, in weekends and in MICU patients. Overall, the mean NAS per nurse per shift was 85.5 %, and the NAS per 24 h was 54.7 %. This study has shown that the nursing workload can be measured per working shift. In the ICU, the NAS differentiates the nursing workload between shifts, patients and units.

Impacting Canadian Public Health Nurses’ Job Satisfaction

Workforce recruitment and retention challenges are being experienced in public health as in other Canadian health sectors. While there are many nurses working in public health, little research has been done about their job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is linked to recruitment, retention and positive client outcomes. The purpose of this research was to examine the relationships between three modifiable work environment factors (autonomy, control-over-practice, and workload) and Canadian public health nurses' (PHNs) job satisfaction. Data were from the 2005 National Survey of the Work and Health of Nurses (response rate, 79.7%; 18,676 nurses). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used for this secondary analysis. Findings were discussed with practicing PHNs, policy-makers and researchers from across Canada at a knowledge translation (KT) 'Think-Tank'. Among the 271 PHNs, 53.5% reported being 'very satisfied' with their jobs. The interaction between autonomy and workload was a significant predictor of PHNs' job satisfaction, (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.96-0.99, p < 0.01) as was the interaction between age and workload (OR 1.01, 95% CI 1.00-1.01, p < 0.01). Think-Tank participants selected priority areas for application to public health practice, management and research. Despite being an important practice factor, this is the first study to reveal the negative influence of PHNs' autonomy when in interaction with an excessive workload. Significant workload findings and the presence of generational differences suggest the need for development of workload measurement tools and public health human resource strategies tailored to a multi-generational workforce.

Determining a set of measurable and relevant factors affecting nursing workload in the acute care hospital setting: A cross-sectional study

BackgroundWhile there has been great interest in the effect of nurse staffing levels have on the quality of care in hospitals, less attention has been given to determining the factors that affect the nursing workload. There are no existing studies that help define measurable factors that have a clear relation to nursing workload. ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to determine the most important and measurable factors, other than patient acuity, that influence nursing workload. DesignA cross-sectional design. SettingsHospitals within the acute hospital care setting. ParticipantsPersons with a nursing educational background, working in Belgian acute care hospitals. MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was developed based on the results of an integrative review, the use of focus groups and a survey on measurability and relevance of the included factors. The questionnaire listed relevant and measurable factors related to nursing workload. Weight and frequency of each factor was assessed. ResultsThe initial list consisted of 94 factors. These factors were regrouped and organised into a questionnaire of 28 measurable and sufficiently relevant factors affecting the nursing workload. More than half of the initial factors seemed to be relevant, but hard to measure on a daily basis. Based on the impact of each factor, the number of work interruptions was the most important factor related to nursing workload. ConclusionsIt is unlikely that a workload instrument will ever be able to take into account all possible factors affecting the nursing workload. Nevertheless, the number of work interruptions, the patient turnover rate and the number of mandatory registrations should be included in the development or revision of a workload measurement tool.

Non-direct patient care factors influencing nursing workload: a review of the literature

The aim of this paper was to detect which non-direct patient care factors are related to nursing workload in acute hospital nursing care and to develop a conceptual model to describe the relationship between the non-direct patient care factors and nursing workload. Since the 1930s, efforts to measure nursing workload have been undertaken. Still, it remains unclear which of the non-direct patient care elements are essential to the nursing workload. PubMed, Embase, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Engineering Village 2, Elin and the British Nursing Index were searched from 1970 up to July 2009. Studies were included in this integrative review if they described factors that are related to nursing workload or if they presented models that explored the association between potential factors, excluding the factors related to direct patient care. Thirty publications were included. The influencing variables were classified in five categories based on their level of impact: the hospital and ward, nursing team, individual nurse, patient and family and meta-characteristics. The variables were also classified, based on their cause-effect relationship. Some factors have a direct impact on the patient-nurse relationship, while others have an effect on the work fluency or on the subjective perception of the nursing workload. A conceptual model was built, based on the interaction between both classifications and derived from the systems theory. Nursing workload has a multi-causal aetiology. The influencing factors from this review can be integrated in a workload measurement tool.

Critical care in the emergency department

The volume and duration of stay of the critically ill in the emergency department (ED) is increasing and is affected by factors including case-mix, overcrowding, lack of available and staffed intensive care beds and an ageing population. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical activity associated with these high-acuity patients and to quantify resource utilization by this patient group. The study was a retrospective review of ED notes from all patients referred directly to the intensive care team over a 6-month period from April to September 2004. We applied a workload measurement tool, Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System (TISS)-28, which has been validated as a surrogate marker of nursing resource input in the intensive care setting. A nurse is considered capable of delivering nursing activities equal to 46 TISS-28 points in each 8-h shift. The median score from our 69 patients was 19 points per patient. Applying TISS-28 methodology, we estimated that 3 h 13 min nursing time would be spent on a single critically ill ED patient, with a TISS score of 19. This is an indicator of the high levels of personnel resources required for these patients in the ED. ED-validated models to quantify nursing and medical staff resources used across the spectrum of ED care is needed, so that staffing resources can be planned and allocated to match service demands.

4217 Final results of a multi-centred research study: the feasibility using workload measurement tools to assess data management workload for a cooperative group study in Australia

4217 Final results of a multi-centred research study: the feasibility using workload measurement tools to assess data management workload for a cooperative group study in Australia

The SAPhTE Study: The comparison of the SAPhTE (Safe-T) workload measurement tool against the current in-service tool within Queensland Health's Emergency Medicine Departments

Summary Background Emergency Departments need management tools that keep up with the changing demands of the emergency work environment. There is a need for a tool that accurately measures overall Emergency Department demand in real time that can provide predictive ED information and be linked to local escalation strategies. Method To test the validity of the SAPhTE scoring matrix as a tool to measure Emergency Department pressures in real time. To achieve this, the relationship between the SAPhTE matrix and other Emergency Department performance indicators were explored. Results The SAPhTE score had a high correlation to the ECHO score, however both scores had a poor correlation to the daily mean number of presentations/admissions. Conclusion The SAPhTE score is a viable tool for use in the Emergency Department setting, and has the advantage over ECHO in that staffing and environmental factors are reflected within the scoring system.

Detecting Mental Workload Fluctuation during Learning of a Novel Task Using Thermography

Training has been identified as a means to reduce mental workload. However, there are limitations associated with many current mental workload measurement techniques. Thermography of the face has been identified as a potential workload measurement tool that may be more closely related to performance and subjective ratings of performance than many other physiological measures. The objective of this study was to validate the efficacy of thermography for assessing mental workload. Twenty participants, 10 males and 10 females, completed seven blocks of an alpha-numeric task. Changes in nose temperature (ANT), task accuracy, reaction time, and two subjective mental workload ratings were collected. Performance improved over time, while ANT and subjective mental workload ratings decreased. Nose temperature was found to be strongly correlated with both performance measures and subjective perceptions of mental workload.