Inadequate nursing personnel for the workload
Inadequate nursing personnel for the workload in most health facilities is becoming a global concern
Inadequate nursing personnel for the workload: Short staffing
A resounding number of nurses blame short staffing as the most common reason nurses leave the profession. According to a recent poll on Allnurses.com, more than one third of 1,500 nurses polled say that continuous short staffing drives nurses from the bedside and, ultimately, the profession. Inadequate nursing personnel is hurting the profession and doctor Dalal Akoury from her long service in the medical sector agrees that, ideally one of the reasons for short staffing is management policies that keeps changing from time to time. Like for instance management making a policy of cutting cost. When such policies are made, the first casualty is normally the reduction of the personnel. His has caused a lot of injury to the profession.
Even with the discouragements which is causing inadequate nursing personnel, nurses are still notoriously known to multitask, wearing many hats on a daily basis. The management are actually very much aware of this yet they turn deaf to effects that comes with it. In their desire of cutting cost they may think that it’s not a problem to go without an office or unit secretary or to have a nurse aide on the unit because nurses will pick up the slack. Unfortunately, this unequal distribution of work leads to many unhappy nurses who burn out quickly when doing the job of many people.
Benefits of having adequate nursing working force
Employers can ease the burden on nurses by mandating nurse-patient ratios. According to the available statistics in California for example, since 2004, California has mandated patient ratios of 1:5 for nurses working in hospital settings. Studies have shown the benefit of such staffing ratios. The Aiken study demonstrated that nurses with California-mandated ratios have less burnout and job dissatisfaction, and the nurses reported consistently better quality of care, leading to decreased turnover.
Decreasing patient-nurse ratios has more benefits than disadvantages that could benefit US hospital systems. The Aiken study followed nurses in three states: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and California—with California being the only state with mandated nurse-to-patient ratios. Over 22,000 RNs were surveyed, and researchers found:
- Fewer RNs in California miss changes in patient conditions because of their decreased workload than RNs in New Jersey or Pennsylvania
- If California’s 1:5 ratios on surgical units were matched, New Jersey hospitals would have 14% fewer patient deaths and Pennsylvania hospitals would have 11% fewer deaths
- In California hospitals with better compliance with the ratios, RNs cite fewer complaints from patients and families
- Nurses in California are far more likely to stay at the bedside and less likely to report burnout than nurses in New Jersey or Pennsylvania.
- RNs in California have more time to spend with patients, and more California hospitals have enough nurses to provide quality patient care
Finally from that study of California, it may become necessary that, to avoid or reduce the inadequate nursing personnel, other states should follow California’s lead and mandate nurse-patient staffing ratios. What will it take to get the message across to industry leaders and make a change in how staffing levels are managed across the United States and beyond is that challenge we have and which must be addressed effectively?
Inadequate nursing personnel for the workload: Short staffing
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