Need opinions here on safe staffing ratios people!

I worked on a PICU that had a strict 1:1 ratio for intubated patients; it was hospital policy. There was no cross-coverage of intubated patients. Someone had to physically be at the bedside so during breaks a resource nurse or the charge nurse covered. If the patient at the next bedside was not intubated and was a floor patient waiting for a bed, that nurse could cover the intubated patient but s/he had to be at the intubated patient's bedside; if her patient needed something the nursing attendant would see to it. If the resource nurse or charge nurse were covering a break and there was a code called, the nurse assigned to the patient returned to the bedside. Automatically and without hesitation.

Thank-you for a wonderful message. I hope all states adopt the nurse/pt. ratio that Cal. Has. They also now have specialty teams under various names per facility that come and take over a pt that MAY be crashing which frees up the floor nurse to cont. the best possible care to their other pts. It would behoove all US states to adopt these also. Today more than ever the pts are paying more and receiving less for their $$. If you can help your state deliver better care maybe even more lives and personal life styles will be saved. Thanks to all participants.


TuTonka

I cant believe some nurses are saying 1:8 on a med surg floor is safe. I have max of 5 at my hospital and it is still extremely crazy sometimes. I guess im sure you could manage with 8, but completely safely? Not in my opinion.

No more than 1:5 on med surg, days, and that's with adequate tech staffing too. They pack in a lot during each day in the hospital, and the acuity is getting higher and higher. Our hospital goes up to 1:6 and that is not always safe. And as Amity said, even 1:5 can be crazy too.

From the California Nurses Association, more than you could ever want to know about nurse patient ratios -- http://www.calnurses.org/assets/pdf/...os_booklet.pdf

OMG! 1:8 ratio? That is completely nuts! When I began working on the Neuro/neurosurgery floor on nite shift 7:30pm-0800am, we had 1RN to 5 patients max. Now, with the economy and budget issues, our administration has deemed it appropriate for 1RN to 7 patients. This is UNSAFE! Wish we had a union!