Why Is It Important To Work As A Nurse

Staffing models play a significant part in the deliverance of care in a health system as it allows systems to put forth adequate staffing to provide a high level of care. The quality of care providers deliver is influenced by individual provider characteristics such as knowledge and experience, as well as human factors such as fatigue. The quality of care is also influenced by the health care organization or system, which involve not only staffing levels, but also patient need, the availability and organization of other staff and support services, and the climate and culture created by leaders in that setting. The same nurse may provide care of differing quality to patients with similar needs under variable staffing conditions and in different work environments. According to The National Center for Biotechnology Information, staffing and patient care quality and safety are directly related. Figure 1 generically illustrates staffing model framework and

The literature review studies discuss the recurrent issue of higher and lower staffing ratios and how they affect patient outcomes. The studies show how several factors affect the nursing workload and the adverse results of the patients. The information is investigated under several methods that range from level one to a level five on the pyramid. The extensive research studies provide the support and the evidence on the issue needing change.

Extensive research has shown that there is a correlation between staffing and patient ratio and patient outcomes. Better outcomes particularly are shown with lower patient to nurse ratio. However staffing issues remain an ongoing concern which greatly impacts the safety of the nurse and their patients, and also impacts cost of healthcare. Evidence shows that adequate staffing causes reduction in mortality, nurse burnout and job satisfaction, and reduction in medical errors.

Ensuring an appropriate nurse-patient ratio can increase patient satisfaction in one of the most vulnerable times of their life, reduce incidents of staff burnout, and decrease incidents of nosocomial infections. Listed below are some added facts on the subject.

Many nurses face the issue of understaffing and having too much of a workload during one shift. When a unit is understaffed not only do the nurses get burnt out, but the patients also don’t receive the care they deserve. The nurse-patient ratio is an aspect that gets overlooked in many facilities that could lead to possible devastating errors. Nurse- patient ratio issues have been a widely studied topic and recently new changes have been made to improve the problem.

Nurse-to-patient ratios is not a new topic of debate for all of us who deliver care to patients every day. Only lately it has been a big issue that have caught the attention of many. Demands by the medical community for changes concerning staffing, asking for the government interventions in minimum staffing laws. Registered nurses have long acknowledged and continue to emphasize that staffing issues are an ongoing concern, one that influences the safety of both the patient and the nurse. (ANA, 2015) .nowadays hospitals are running for profit and the emphasis is not put on job burnout, stress, and endangerment of patients. Nursing shortages is a very pertinent problem, it will be optimum to have laws in place to help with the issue, however meanwhile leadership and management methods to the matter can help to mend the nursing situation and avoid many of the damaging effects of unfitting nurse-to-patient ratios.

Additionally, the study found that a high patient to nurse ratio resulted in greater emotional exhaustion and greater job dissatisfaction amongst nurses. Each additional patient per nurse was associated with a 23% increase in the likelihood of nurse burnout, and a 15% increase in the likelihood of job dissatisfaction. Moreover, 40% of hospital nurses have burnout levels exceeding the normal level for healthcare workers, and job dissatisfaction among hospital nurses is four times greater than the average for all US workers. 43% of nurses involved in this study that reported job dissatisfaction intended to leave their job within the upcoming year. (Aiken et al.)

Nurses are crucial in providing quality care in the health care industry. It is imperative to maintain the proper staffing ratio to ensure that nurses can maintain high quality care for their patients. Studies have shown that the increasing workload of nurses can be linked to increased patient deaths, medical errors, hospital-acquired infections, longer hospital stays, and many other complications. (National Nurses United n.d. ) Leaders and managers play a vital role in developing

Nursing is the powerhouse in the delivery of safe, quality patient-centered care in the healthcare industry. To ensure continued safety of the patient and nursing staff, the issue of inadequate staffing must be addressed. Consequently, patient’s mortality rate has been linked to the level of nursing staff utilized in ensuring an utmost outcome (Aiken, 2011). This paper will outline the issue associated with inadequate nurse to patient staffing ratios in the hospital setting; essential factors such as economic, social, ethical and political and legal affecting the issue will be established; current legislature and stakeholders will be ascertained and policy option, evaluation of bill and the results of analysis will be reviewed.

The Importance of Proper Staffing Proper staffing within organizations is considered essential to business endeavors and management. By definition, staffing is defined as the “process involved in identifying, assessing, placing, evaluating, and directing individuals at work” (Ramasamy, 2009, p. 82). Upon researching an article related to staffing, some hospitals are experiencing a higher percentage of patient deaths that are linked to not having enough nurses scheduled, and the financial availability of the hospital institutions.

The importance of staffing relating to patients and nurse is very critical as it secures the quality of healthcare services being provided. Quality care is a major focus for health care providers which is indicated by direct patient outcomes. It comprises effective principles that are safe, timely, patient centered, and efficient. One of the quality outcomes that determine the type of care provided to patients is nurse staffing. Nurses may fail to carry out their expected duties due to issues of low staff levels, inadequate time or lack of effective skills. This paper discusses how staffing affects both patients and nurse in the provision of quality care. Research studies show that there is a direct relationship between adequate nurse staffing and better patient outcomes (Buhlman, 2016).

There is a strong relationship between higher nursing ratios and quality of patient care. Safety of the patient is at the forefront of this debate. Higher ratios can be associated with fewer patients, creating an increase of patient hours for the registered nurse. Longer time spent with each patient can translate into fewer potential or real problems being overlooked due to not enough time spent assessing the patient. “74% of California staff nurses thought the quality of care had improved as a result of the

How many patients can a nurse effectively care for at the same time? The complexity of that question has caused it to be quite difficult to answer. In the hospital setting today, managers are found being forced to create guidelines for staffing based on numbers instead of needs. These new staffing models are established based on nurse to patient ratios. Therefore, patient census is the primary determining element for justification of available health care providers per shift (Artz, 2005). Acuity of patients and experience of providers are no longer factors that are being considered, and these nurse to patient ratios do not always provide a safe environment. Research has shown that these ineffective nurse to patient ratios are contributing to inadequate patient care (Sochalski, 2004). A new approach for nursing staffing needs to be put enacted for the furtherance of quality of care, patient safety, nurse satisfaction and the overall healthcare environment.

Why are the outcomes of patients so low when patient to nurse ratio is so high? Nurses are taking on more responsibility than ever before. Hospital administration worldwide believe that they can continue to add responsibility to the nurse’s shoulders and the outcome of patients will thrive. There are several reasons why the patient outcomes depend on nurses. Nurses have fewer resources which is leading to infections and potential falls. The risk of increased medication errors when staffing is inadequate must also be considered. Most importantly, exhausted overworked nurses will lead to poor patient

Throughout the United States, staffing issues are an ongoing concern which can impact the safety of both the patient and the nurse. Every healthcare facility is challenged with finding optimal nurse-patient ratio to ensure safe patient outcomes. Quality of care and patient safety is related to nurse to patient ratio. In order for care to be delivered safely the number of patients a nurse is caring for during his/her shift should be based on the level of acuity of care. Lowering the nurse to patient ratio will help increase patient safety. Tevington (2011) noted that by decreasing the