On May 15, 2014, the Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act of 2014 was introduced to the Senate. Backed by the American Nurses Association, the legislation allows registered nurses to have more of a say in hospital staffing decisions.
“It is encouraging that members of both chambers of Congress understand the connection between nurse staffing and patient safety. There is no room for debate: When there are appropriate nurse staffing levels, lives are saved and patient outcomes improve,” says ANA president Karen A. Daley. “With federal legislation we can vastly advance the quality of patient care and improve working conditions for nurses.”
Eric Darienzo, senior director at RNnetwork, is in favor of the bill as well.
“As a healthcare staffing company, our staff and our talented nurses in the field are always pleased to see actions, and in this case legislation, that improve patient care,” Eric says. “Proper nurse-to-patient ratios benefit both the patient and the provider outcome, and it is great to see legislation that supports these staffing efforts.”
Here are three things you need to know about the bill:
It will require hospitals to create detailed staffing plans. Hospital committees comprised of at least 55 percent direct care nurses must come up with unit-by-unit nurse staffing plans based on patient numbers, the RNs’ education level and experience, the services provided by other healthcare professionals, available technology and other factors.
It will ensure that nurses do not work in units where they do not have adequate training or experience. The Safe Staffing Act aims to provide better patient care and would limit the use of “floating nurses” by making sure that nurses work in departments they’re comfortable in.
It will hold hospitals who participate in Medicare accountable for reporting staffing information publicly daily. These reports must include the number of licensed and unlicensed staff providing direct patient care, especially the number of RNs, and data about patient outcomes, vacancy and turnover rates, and nursing care hours.
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