Doesn't this all sound so familiar? I seem to remember reading similar articles in the late severties and again in the mid eighties. For some reason, the definition of insanity comes to mind.
"When nurse staffing levels fell below target levels in a large hospital, more patients died, a new study discovered.
The finding may provide guidance in an era of nursing shortages and cost-cutting, in that the focus should shift from cost to patient safety, said the authors of the research, appearing in the March 17 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"Hospitals need to know what their nursing needs are for their patients, and they need to bring staffing into line," said study senior author Jack Needleman, a professor of health services at the School of Public Health of the University of California Los Angeles.
"Patients are entitled to be safe in the hospital and to have care delivered reliably and to have nurses with enough time to make sure they aren't developing avoidable complications with permanent consequences," Needleman said."
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyl...ay/650936.html
Sincerely,
Andrew Lopez, RN
Nursefriendly, Inc. A New Jersey Corporation.
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Doesn't this all sound so familiar? I seem to remember reading similar articles in the late severties and again in the mid eighties. For some reason, the definition of insanity comes to mind.
It sure does, and last time it resulted in the implementation of nursing ratios in California. Unfortunately the rest of the country did not follow suit.
We'll see how it plays out this time, with the monster nursing shortage that is coming as the Baby Boomers start entering our hospitals and nursing homes whether they can afford or not?
Andrew Lopez, RN
Lets Connect! http://www.nursefriendly.com/social/
Is this link any relation to the study you mentioned? http://www.ultimatenurse.com/forum/f...67/#post135301
I believe Needleman is mentioned in both stories....... And from what I can see, this concern comes up every decade.
There have been nursing shortages and gluts on a semi-regular basis. That should be taken into account, also.
Yep, same study, I posted a review of the the New England Journal of Medicine article, different opinions. Your article was published before it appeared in the NEJM.
It should be coming up again, and again, and again till consumers start demanding safe staffing ratios. Dunno what it will take, but I'll keep posting and raising awareness of it.
Lets tweet them both to the social networks, shall we?
Andrew Lopez, RN
Lets Connect! http://www.nursefriendly.com/social/
Sorry---the only things that tweet over here are the robins setting up a nest outside our front door.
Clean up, Aisle 2!
Yes when the nurses are dying on the floor of course mortality rates are up. Just look at all the dead nurses lying around. Had a trauma come in the other night. Had some chest pain hit me. Thankfully I had my aspirin and nitros handy. I obviously survived, so did the pt. Should have seen the look on the trauma surgeons face when he saw me take a nitro. You could tell he was thinking "I do traumas not cardiacs"
In response to tweeting. I do not understand why people tweet. Interferes with my golf game.