Staff at the City Community Hospital, Oxford, and those working on Kestrel Ward, Thames House, Oxford, have started a 19 week pilot of StaffCare, the electronic rostering system, (known as E-Rostering).  During this time managers and staff will be trained and supported to move from the paper based activities which support staff rostering.  All the key processes around rostering will be tried and tested throughout the pilot and paper processes will only cease when the new system is fully established and working successfully.

It is anticipated that the implementation of e-rostering will bring about a number of benefits which include:

• a reduction in the amount of time that staff and managers spend dealing with payroll activities, allowing time to be re-invested back into the wards and patient care,
• web based access to the system, enabling staff to view the rota, request leave and shifts and sign off time sheets from home,
• consistent and clear processes across all wards, including rota management,
• a reduction in duplications and manual reporting,
• the opportunity to refresh employees’ understanding of relevant HR policies.

The new system will be rolled out to all inpatient units/wards from September 2012 to May 2013 once assurances are in place that the staff are fully trained in using the system, that it positively supports the operational running of the ward, effectively interfaces with payroll and that all major issues have been resolved.  For further information about this pilot project please contact Ema Dwyer, Implementation Manager (ema.dwyer@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk).