Workforce

Why staffing matters

Staffing levels have a direct impact on care quality and safety for people who use and deliver services. When there are too few staff, risks increase, including:

• falls
• pressure ulcers
• infections
• longer hospital stays
• delays in accessing care
• missed care
• undetected deterioration
• increased hospital admissions
• higher death rates
• staff burnout

During times of pressure or change, staff often carry heavier workloads and have less time to monitor patients, increasing the risk of harm. When staffing levels are low, care across all settings becomes transactional, focusing only on urgent tasks rather than holistic, person-centred support.

Skills and team mix

The Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 states that safe care depends on:

• having enough staff
• the right mix of skills
• staff with the right training and experience

The Common Staffing Method The Common Staffing Method (CSM)  (CSM) provides:

• an evidence‑based way to plan staffing
• guidance on the right number and mix of staff

CSM principles can support any care setting. The CSM combines:

• staffing tools
• professional judgement
• local context
• quality data

Under the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019, areas that use nationally approved staffing tools must use the CSM.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland provides more details and resources on workforce planning and safe staffing.

Additional tools and resources to support safe staffing levels

The CAIR dashboard:

• shows workforce data alongside quality indicators
• helps teams understand how staffing affects care quality

The QoC Review Guidance supports teams to:

• review CSM and CAIR data together
• link staffing decisions with care quality

By bringing staffing evidence and quality measures together, they are considered as one connected system.