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OBJECTIVE: Weekend admissions to hospital are associated with worse patient outcomes. Casualisation of the weekend workforce and reduced access to allied health (AH) services may contribute to this phenomenon. Alternative AH staffing models have been proposed. This study explored the perceptions of AH staff regarding weekend and after-hour staffing models. METHODS: Mixed-methods study including descriptive and thematic analysis of survey and focus group data. Participants were AH staff and stakeholders from a major Victorian (Australian) public health service. RESULTS: 160 staff (21%) completed the online survey. Three focus groups (16 participants) were conducted. Most AH disciplines used a casual staffing model on weekends. Most survey respondents (79%) thought a staffing model across 7 days would improve patient outcomes. In the focus groups, staff reported that the existing weekend staffing model was inadequate and could be optimised by weekday staff working across 7 days. For AH staff to work across 7 days, they emphasised the importance of planning and flexibility to enable a healthy work/life balance. CONCLUSIONS: AH staff and stakeholders were dissatisfied with the casual AH workforce model on weekends. Sustainable AH staffing models across 7 days are becoming increasingly important as healthcare resources become strained due to increasing demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite improvements in pain and physical capacity experienced by patients following total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA), recent studies suggest that levels of physical activity may not change. This study aimed to qualitatively explore people's beliefs and perspectives about physical activity at 6 months following THA or TKA for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA) . Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants (age range 51-78 years) at 6 months post-arthroplasty surgery. Participants were recruited from a concurrent larger quantitative study examining quantitative physical activity levels via accelerometers. Interviews were transcribed, coded and analysed using a thematic approach. Results: Participants described greater capacity to be physically active post-surgery despite no increase in objective measures. Three themes emerged from the interviews relating to the participants perspective of physical activity after surgery: (1) physical activity is for enjoying living; (2) new limitations on physical activity: age and comorbidities; and (3) personal beliefs about physical activity: it is enough to know you can. Conclusion: Individual beliefs and perceptions are important in understanding factors influencing physical activity following THA and TKA. Health practitioners should examine this when developing management plans aimed at optimizing physical activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]