Workload/outcome measurement for hospital educators. Confirming the value of education.

At Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, the education department has implemented a workload/outcome measurement system to analyze the elements necessary to deliver educational services and to identify the outcomes of that service at the application and impact levels. The system is unique in that it considers the "costs" in terms of the time and money necessary to produce an educational product in relationship to the "benefits" of that product to the organization. Monitoring workloads can help set work priorities and adjust work activities. Measuring outcomes can provide justification for workload by determining whether the activity made a difference and can draw attention to the importance of removing system barriers and of providing ongoing support in the workplace to achieve higher outcomes. This system can be adapted successfully to any healthcare facility to make decisions about educational priorities and resource allocation.