[-jt]

Nurse Staffing, Overtime Bill Introduced in Florida!
2/25/02

"A bill introduced recently in the Florida Senate would establish minimum nurse-to-patient hospital staffing ratios more stringent then the ones announced earlier in California, while also setting ratios for facilities other than hospitals. Additionally, this bill includes banning mandatory overtime for direct-care nurses.

The proposed Safe Staffing for Quality Care Act, backed by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU/AFL-CIO), would set minimum ratios of:

Nurseatient

1:1 in operating rooms and trauma emergency rooms

1:2 in critical care/intensive care, labor and delivery, and post anesthesia recovery rooms

1:3 in the Emergency Department, pediatrics, and telemetry

1:4 in medical-surgical units and intermediate nurseries

1:5 in skilled nursing and rehabilitation facilities

1:6 in postpartum and well baby nurseries.

The Florida Hospital Association opposes the legislation on the grounds that hospitals need the flexibility to determine staffing based on the condition and needs of patients, and the experience and education mix of the patient care team."

http://www.Nursingspectrum.com

[amy]

Makes me long for such requirments in NYS...(sigh)

[CANRN]

Oh WOW! *speechless*

[-jt]

<The Florida Hospital Association opposes the legislation on the grounds that hospitals need the flexibility to determine staffing based on the condition and needs of patients, and the experience and education mix of the patient care team.">


Since this is exactly what they are supposed to be doing now & they abuse it so much that it doesnt work, what's the chances their argument will win out? I guess if they spend a lot of money on lobbying, no matter what the facts are, they just might actually be able to kill this bill.

The union nurses got the bill in there. Now its up to ALL of Florida's direct-care nurses to turn up the heat on their legislators to get the bill passed into law.

An email telling them to support it takes just a moment to write. The more Florida nurses they hear from, the better the chances of passing the law & setting precedent for the rest of the states.

[Cascadians]

Awesome. Can't imagine it happening, but if it did, no more "shortage."

" 1:5 in skilled nursing and rehabilitation facilities "

Now this we'd really like to see. Unbelievable. 1:5 in nursing homes?
You get 1 CNA for every 5 patients in a nursing home and those patients will IMPROVE ! They will be clean and their needs attended. Unbelievable. The nursing homes will go broke, ie their owners won't have 5 Mercedes.
They couldn't mean 1 RN for every 5 patients ... the "industry" would lynch them for the cost, can you imagine ?!?

Considering the recession and the tax $$$ flying out the window in daily $$Billions$$$ for the war efforts, this just ain't gonna happen. Sure wish it did. Nursing really needs this to happen.