[Analysing the work of medical and nursing staff: comparison between PsychPV requirements and everyday activities on psychiatric wards].
BACKGROUND
Since 1991 the German psychiatry personnel regulation act (PsychPV) defines the number and tasks of medical doctors and nursing staff on a psychiatric ward. However, there is the suspicion that there are differences, especially with regard to an increased proportion of activities not involving patients, such as documentation and administrative work.


METHODS
To detect differences between requirements from the PsychPV and the actual amount of time spent on different activities, a task analysis was performed on a general psychiatric and a gerontological psychiatric ward. In this study the proportions of working time spent on five different types of activities with time that should have been spent according to the PsychPV were compared.


RESULTS
Discrepancies were found on both psychiatric wards and for medical doctors as well as for nursing staff. Tasks of documentation and administrative work took significantly higher proportions of working time than required in the PsychPV. On the other hand psychiatric personnel spent less time for treatment or nursing in direct contact with the patients.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study confirmed the suspicion that shifting tasks on psychiatric wards has led to changed treatment settings.
Hodek
J-M
JM
Universität Bielefeld - Fakultät für Gesundheitswissenschaften, Gesundheitsökonomie und Gesundheitsmanagement, Bielefeld, Deutschland. jan-marc.hodek@uni-bielefeld.de
Scholz
S
S
Vieten
B
B
Greiner
W
W
D004282:Documentation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005858:Germany; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007587:Job Description; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011567:Psychiatric Department, Hospital / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013996:Time and Motion Studies; D016526:Workload / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*