Abstract:
As Australian hospitals have restructured and
work patterns have changed 'multi-skilling' has
become a necessary component for health care
professionals, especially nurses. To date, there has been
little empirical evidence to assess these changes and
their effects on nurses and nursing work. This paper
will discuss work sampling as a research method to
assess what nurses do and how they spend their
working day. The results examine nursing activities
carried out in a private, not for profit hospital in
metropolitan Sydney, Australia, and will be used
to highlight the uses of this type of data. Work
sampling can, in conjunction with other management
tools, prove invaluable for managers.
