• Aged Care Staffing Concerns Report

  • This form supports Aged Care workers to report instances of understaffing. Please fill out this form every time you believe your workplace is understaffed and the safety of patients or workers is at risk.

    Privacy Act 2020

    The personal and health and safety information collected on this form may be used to facilitate safer staffing in the workplace. This statement does not replace, and should be read in conjunction with, the privacy statements on the NZNO online joining form.

    Please don’t identify any residents when you fill in this form.

    You are protected when raising a health and safety matter 

    It is illegal for the PCBU (i.e. your employer or their representative) to take discriminatory action against you or other workers for completing this assessment. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 you have protections from such conduct.

    If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at nurses@nzno.org.nz.

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  • Shift information

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  • Staffing shortfalls

  • Impact on Care

  • What happened when your ward or unit was understaffed?

  • Missed breaks

  • Poor skill mix

    When the skill mix is poor, the competencies of staff on duty may not be sufficient for them to safely complete required tasks. For example:

    • Lack of medication competencies.
    • The majority of HCAs do not have Level 3 or 4 qualifications.

  • Poor staff mix

    Some of the things that can happen when the staff mix is poor are:

    • The mix of available RN/RM/EN/HCA staff doesn't support the team to provide consistent high-quality care.
    • The ratio of home area staff to non-home area staff compromises the quality of care.
    • There is no RN in a work area/wing.
    • There is a lack of other support staff e.g. activities.

  • Unfilled shift

    When a shift is unfilled:

    • A staff member not replaced, or is replaced with a short shift.
    • There is a rostering shortfall, with gaps on the roster.

  • Overstaffed shift

    When a shift is overstaffed, there are:

    • vacant beds,
    • or more staff on the shift than the roster would normally require.

  • Care rationing

    During care rationing, required patient care is:

    • omitted,
    • unduly delayed,
    • delivered at a substandard level,
    • or delegated inappropriately to someone not qualified to complete it.

  • Professional judgement

    In a staff member's professional judgment, they may deem that the workplace is unsafe due to issues with:

    • workloads,
    • environment
    • and/or teamwork.

  • What's your shift's score, and what does it mean?

    Your answers to the questions above add up to a score for your shift.

    You can see your shift's score below, along with what it indicates about the current capacity of your facility.

  • Purple light

    Score -1: Excess care capacity

    The facility currently has spare capacity (e.g., can accommodate more residents, allow staff to share shifts, or offer short-notice leave).

    Green light

    Score 0-4: Care capacity meets demand

    The facility is well-resourced with staffing levels matching the care needs of resident's care and cultural requirements.

    Blue light

    Score 5-11: Early signs of strain

    The facility is stretched, with early signs of pressure on care delivery, such as longer response times and staff fatigue.

    Orange light

    Score 12-17: Significant care capacity deficit

    The facility is operating beyond its optimal capacity, leading to compromised care delivery. Staff may need to make difficult decisions, and there is a heightened risk of negative outcomes for residents.

    Red light

    Score 18-21: Critical care capacity deficit

    The facility is in a severely compromised state, with care quality affected and evident negative consequences for residents' well-being and staff.

  • What else can you do?

    Besides making this report, please be sure to:

    1. Fill out an incident report at work.
    2. Tell your Health and Safety Representative about this situation.

  • Additional information

  • Manager / Supervisor notification and response

  • Time-stamp and declaration

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  • I declare that I have completed this Aged Care Staffing Concerns report in good faith, and that to the best of my knowledge and ability, the information provided is as accurate as possible to determine at the time of completion.

  • Thank you very much for filling out this form.

    Together we can show how understaffing impacts worker health and safety, as well as the residents in our care.

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