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Meet the rostering challenge with Zircadian’s e-rostering module for Junior Doctors
The creation and management of junior doctor rosters is hugely complex and differs greatly to the rostering of other NHS staff groups, with an array of specific rules and regulations and hefty fines for non-compliance. With the need to avoid gaps in service, and to share critical information across a trust, the task is even more difficult.
Key considerations include the hours limits and rest requirements imposed by the New Deal, which is unique to the governance of junior doctors. Poor management of shift swaps or changes can cause breaches of these rules, and resulting Band 3 penalty payments can prove financially crippling for trusts.
Like other NHS staff, doctors’ hours must meet the Working Time Regulations. However, for doctors this health and safety legislation applies differently, and necessitates continuous monitoring of the duty roster to ensure safe working at all times whilst also maximising training opportunities.
The Zircadian E-rostering Solution
Through a collaboration with Zircadian, SMART now offer a specialist e-rostering solution for junior doctors that goes much further than any generic rostering solution can to meet the needs of this staff group. Zircadian’s new e-rostering system is designed specifically to handle the unique rules and regulations that govern junior doctors’ work patterns.
Through the partnership SMART provide a one-stop shop for expert solutions, each tailored carefully to meet the needs of a particular staff group.
The Benefits of e-Rostering for Junior Doctors
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EWTD monitoring - continually monitors a doctor’s working arrangement for a single employer, providing an up-to-date, accurate record of working time, rest, any breaches and how those breaches were resolved.
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New Deal compliance - aligns the duty roster to the contracted rota, meaning tighter control of New Deal compliance and significantly reduced risk of unexpected higher banding costs.
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Better use of internal resources - reduces demand for external locums by identifying available doctors within a trust, identifying doctors with the right competencies and available hours, including those that have opted out of the 48-hour limit to cover unexpected service gaps. Further reduces locum costs by ensuring prospective cover arrangements are adhered to on the roster.
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Increased safety and reduced risk - improves health and safety by minimising the risk of tired doctors, reducing the need for external locums, and preventing gaps in the daytime and on-call clinical service.
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Accurate, accessible information - allows accurate roster information to be accessed by doctors, nurses, medical staffing, roster managers, night managers and the bleep desk. This means better communication and faster decision-making.
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Continuous and safe service delivery - reduces the risk of service interruptions by automatically identifying potential shortfalls in daytime and on-call service resulting from swap or leave requests.
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Greater accountability and transparency - provides a full audit trail of all changes made to a published roster, and alerts the user to any potential compliance or coverage issues for a requested change as well as recording the reason for the decision if the change goes ahead.
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Reduced workload and admin costs - significantly reduces time spent building and managing the duty roster, allowing smarter and more cost-effective deployment of resources. Prevents duplication of effort through clearer responsibilities and better sharing of information.
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Happier doctors - minimises inequitable working arrangements between doctors on the same roster. Doctors can achieve a better work-life balance by being able to access an up-to-date roster, identify when they can take leave and who they can swap with.
If you would like to arrange a meeting to discuss how Zircadian and SMART can meet the unique needs of all staff groups at your trust, please contact SMART
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