Common risky behaviours checklist: a tool to assist nurse supervisors to assess unsafe practice

AimTo describe the development of the Common Risky Behaviour Checklist, a tool to aid nurse supervisors in determining when a nurse may be questionably fit to perform, particularly in cases of substance abuse. BackgroundA significant number of nurses may have substance use disorders that could manifest as unsafe performance at work, and nurse supervisors lack the tools to assess a nurse's fitness to perform at work. MethodJob analysis techniques were used to identify the critical impairment behaviours for the tool. Job analysis is a legally defensible, multi-stage process used in the organisational psychology field to develop work performance assessments. ResultsA screening tool was developed for nurse supervisors to assess when a nurse may be questionably fit to perform. ConclusionThe development of this checklist is one of several needed advancements in order to address the issue of fitness to perform and patient safety. Implications for nursing managementThe Common Risky Behaviour Checklist offers nurse managers assistance in protecting patient safety by providing a quick (one-page), systematic, behaviour-based method to collect information that can inform urgent decisions, trigger performance corrections and can complement formal organisational documentation processes in cases of unsafe practice due to substance abuse.