Optima is an electronic management system and workforce tool to enable the effective, safe and equitable utilisation of staff and resources across our organisations. It enables managers to more effectively roster to staffing needs by time of day, day of week and by skill level, ensuring that the ‘right people, with the right skills, at the right time’ are available. It enables end-to-end staff management based on one consolidated view of all staff groups and all staff types, whether substantive, bank or agency.
Optima has the ability to generate simple to complex healthcare rosters via self or auto roster functionality. Enables end to end roster management and visibility. Will be replacing SSTS by March 2028. Live for Nursing and Midwifery in Early Adopter sites IRH and VOL. Moving next to RAH and broadening out to other professional groups. Deployment plan coming soon!
Benefits of Optima include:
- Improved patient care – by ensuring that correctly skilled staff are on duty, and increasing time to care
- Roster Analysis – objectively shows if the roster is ‘good’ e.g. safe, fair and efficient – via Key Performance Indicators
- Resource Efficiency – highlights and reduces avoidable costs by better utilisation of the workforce and reducing dependency on temporary workforce – delivering improved continuity of care
Integrates with SafeCare (Real Time Staffing and Staffing Level Tools), BankStaff and Loop. Interfacing with eRota (resident Doctor Rota management) and eJobPlan (Consultant grades) are in development. Other functionality is still to be considered for use in our Board, these are; Activity Planner – allows scheduling of clinical activity, assigning a lead to activity and other supporting staff i.e. specialists.
These Optima Navigation videos have been developed to help staff become familiar with the key features and functions of the Optima rostering system. The videos provide practical, step-by-step guidance on navigating the system, accessing and managing rosters, reviewing staff information, recording availability, and completing common rostering tasks. By supporting consistent use of Optima, these resources aim to improve user confidence, enhance roster management processes, and support effective workforce planning across services, allowing anyone who has not been able to make engagement or training sessions to access at any time convenient to them.
Roster Finalisation
As part of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s ongoing governance improvements, the process for finalising both substantive and bank shifts has been updated. Only Charge Nurses and above will be authorised to finalise all shift types for payment. Access for all other staff is being systematically removed, and some staff may already find they no longer have sign-off permissions. They will also now be required to tick the Counter Fraud Declaration whenever finalising with Optima (QRG Attached). This update strengthens governance and ensures that shift authorisation is carried out by staff with appropriate seniority and oversight responsibilities.
Exceptions
There may be exceptions identified in specific circumstances, such as administrative support. These must be agreed in advance via the relevant Sector/HSCP Chief Nurse prior to requesting via email to the CORE eRostering Team at ggc.coreerosteringteam@ggc.scot.nhs.uk
Important Note – Please note that the deadline for finalising Substantive shifts is 11am every Monday and does not change the deadline of 12pm every Friday for finalising Bank shifts.
If you have any queries regarding the change in process, please contact the CORE eRostering Team directly on 0141 278 2999 or ggc.coreerosteringteam@ggc.scot.nhs.uk. We appreciate your continued cooperation during this transition.
To Support you with these changes the Quick Reference Guides have been updated to included review screenshots of how the process will now flow
Moving from SSTS to Optima eRostering
SSTS Roster Management Process
As part of a developing deployment plan, we will be contacting areas in agreed order of prioritisation to gather information required to configure your rosters and embark on engagement and training.
Data Gathering booklets are structured tools used to systematically capture key information required to support the configuration of an Optima roster. They gather consistent details about services, staffing models, working patterns, skill mix, and operational requirements, ensuring accurate and comprehensive data is available before build and configuration.
This booklet is designed to help the CORE Team build and configure your roster in Optima & SafeCare based on your current rostering practices. By capturing the required information, it helps streamline the process and, where possible, produce a robust first draft roster that reflects Funded Establishment, Rostering Policy (where applicable), and any local bespoke rostering requirements.
Completing the workbook accurately will help ensure your Optima roster is set up safely, consistently, and in line with how your service runs. Please review each section carefully, update any missing or incorrect information, and highlight anything that requires further discussion with the Core e-Rostering team.
This short video provides an overview of the Data Gathering Workbook for Nursing & Midwifery and how it supports Optima eRostering setup.
▶️ Watch Video
Download the Nursing & Midwifery Data Gathering Workbook here.
Due to the personal information captured in Optima, the Workforce Business Systems programme has identified a need to publish a role-based authentication model (RBAC), which specify the various roles and associated permission to ensure appropriate access based on related board process and policies.
This paper has been coproduced by Core Team and Bank Team to document the model, please read to consider roles that are established are listed with. RBAC
