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    Advocacy Memo

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    This document discusses a bill, H.R. 2392, that would mandate minimum nurse-patient ratios nationwide in order to improve patient safety and care quality. The document argues that high nurse-patient ratios currently put nurses in impossible situations where they cannot safely care for patients, and increases the risk of medical errors, adverse events, nurse burnout, and patient mortality. Studies show a 23% increase in burnout and 15% decrease in job satisfaction for every additional patient over 4 assigned to a nurse, and a 7% increase in patient mortality for every additional patient added to a nurse's shift. The document recommends passing the bill to establish minimum staffing ratios and provide adequate nursing care based on patient acuity and census.

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    Advocacy Memo

    Uploaded by

    api-433700464
    111 views2 pages
    This document discusses a bill, H.R. 2392, that would mandate minimum nurse-patient ratios nationwide in order to improve patient safety and care quality. The document argues that high nurse-patient ratios currently put nurses in impossible situations where they cannot safely care for patients, and increases the risk of medical errors, adverse events, nurse burnout, and patient mortality. Studies show a 23% increase in burnout and 15% decrease in job satisfaction for every additional patient over 4 assigned to a nurse, and a 7% increase in patient mortality for every additional patient added to a nurse's shift. The document recommends passing the bill to establish minimum staffing ratios and provide adequate nursing care based on patient acuity and census.

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    This document discusses a bill, H.R. 2392, that would mandate minimum nurse-patient ratios nationwide in order to improve patient safety and care quality. The document argues that high nurse-patient ratios currently put nurses in impossible situations where they cannot safely care for patients, and increases the risk of medical errors, adverse events, nurse burnout, and patient mortality. Studies show a 23% increase in burnout and 15% decrease in job satisfaction for every additional patient over 4 assigned to a nurse, and a 7% increase in patient mortality for every additional patient added to a nurse's shift. The document recommends passing the bill to establish minimum staffing ratios and provide adequate nursing care based on patient acuity and census.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    111 views2 pages

    Advocacy Memo

    Uploaded by

    api-433700464
    This document discusses a bill, H.R. 2392, that would mandate minimum nurse-patient ratios nationwide in order to improve patient safety and care quality. The document argues that high nurse-patient ratios currently put nurses in impossible situations where they cannot safely care for patients, and increases the risk of medical errors, adverse events, nurse burnout, and patient mortality. Studies show a 23% increase in burnout and 15% decrease in job satisfaction for every additional patient over 4 assigned to a nurse, and a 7% increase in patient mortality for every additional patient added to a nurse's shift. The document recommends passing the bill to establish minimum staffing ratios and provide adequate nursing care based on patient acuity and census.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 2

    To: Dave Brat

    From: Mikayla Crookshanks


    Date: 10/24/17
    Subject: H.R. 2392 Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2017
    Everyday nurses are put into impossible situations where they are assigned too many patients or
    too high of care acuity patients. This makes it increasingly hard to provide safe, effective care
    (National Nurses United, 2017). However, there is a way to solve this problem – enforcing
    minimum nurse-patient ratios nationwide and I support H.R. 2392 Nurse Staffing Standards for
    Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2017 in its efforts to get such ratio guidelines mandated.
    Studies show that inadequate staffing and high nurse-patient ratios not only affects the nurse’s
    health and work satisfaction and significantly decreases the availability of safe, effective care,
    but it also increases the risk of medical errors and adverse events. The health of nurses and their
    patients’ should always be prioritized over the monetary benefit or savings of high nurse-patient
    ratios.

     According to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, for every
    additional patient a nurse is assigned after four patients (in an acute care setting), there is
    a 23 percent increased risk of burnout and a 15 percent decrease in overall job
    satisfaction (Department for Professional Employees, 2016).
     In terms of decreased patient care, studies also show that with every additional patient
    added to a nurse’s shift assignment comes a 7 percent increase in the likelihood of
    mortality (Department for Professional Employees, 2016).
    Recommendation: Vote to pass bill H.R. 2392 Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and
    Quality Care Act of 2017. As you can see based on these statistics and many more, high nurse-
    patient ratios do not result in favorable outcomes for either party. I recommend that all hospitals
    establish and maintain minimum staffing ratios. In addition, efforts need to be made to provide
    adequate registered nurse staffing, according to patient acuity and census, in order to consistently
    meet these ratios every shift.
    Hospitals are supposed to be safe places for patients to come in their time of need and be
    confident that they will receive adequate and effective treatment and nursing care. When dealing
    with the many factors and worries associated with being hospitalized, the last thing patients and
    their family members/friends should have to worry about is if they are going to receive the care
    and attention they deserve.
    References
    Congress.gov (2017-2018). H.R.2392 - Nurse staffing standards for hospital patient safety and

    quality care act of 2017. Retrieved from: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-

    congress/house-bill/2392?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22nurse%22%5D%7D&r=5

    Dorning, J. Department for Professional Employees (2016). Safe-staffing ratios: Benefiting

    nurses and patients. Retrieved from: http://dpeaflcio.org/programs-publications/issue-

    fact-sheets/safe-staffing-ratios-benefiting-nurses-and-patients/#_edn13

    National Nurses United (2017). National campaign for safe RN-to-patient staffing ratios.

    Retrieved from: http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/ratios

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