Family wins lawsuit against hospital for unsafe staffing

Published

See link for full story.

Nurse had 20 patients.

abcnews.go.com/WNT/Health/story?id+1529546

I am glad someone has finally won a lawsuit that exposes

unsafe staffing.

Nurse Staffing In Hospitals: Is There A Business Case For Quality?

Jack Needleman, Peter I. Buerhaus, Maureen Stewart, Katya Zelevinsky and Soeren Mattke

http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi...tract/25/1/204

..."Whether or not staffing should be increased depends on the value patients and payers assign to avoided deaths and complications."

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Specializes in Utilization Management.
Nurse Staffing In Hospitals: Is There A Business Case For Quality?

Jack Needleman, Peter I. Buerhaus, Maureen Stewart, Katya Zelevinsky and Soeren Mattke

http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi...tract/25/1/204

..."Whether or not staffing should be increased depends on the value patients and payers assign to avoided deaths and complications."

Spacenurse, I can't find the article. Could you please post it again? I'd love to have a copy of this one.

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Specializes in Utilization Management.

Bingo!! Thanks, Spacenurse! Our recruitment committee will be getting a copy. Just so they know what wise nurses are looking for in a hospital. ;)

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Specializes in Case Management, Home Health, UM.

When you get to the error page, click on the health link and it will take you to the article.

Yeah, I read it all right, and it doesn't surprise me a bit...which is why I walked away from hospital nursing for good 19 years ago, after I was left in charge of 38 seriously ill patients with one tech and no one to pass meds (they pulled my only LPN to OB, because that unit had just been cited by the DHR for being understaffed).

NEVER AGAIN! :angryfire

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I also am in the "never again" mood as far as hospital nursing goes.

I am looking at alternatives.

I do know that if you accept the assignment, then, you are liable

to be charged with abandonement if you leave, at least the nurse

was making an attempt. But, if you leave before you accept the

assignment, you cannot be charged with abandonement, but you

are in a place then of deciding if you leave the job....or you lose

your job for leaving.

It is tough.

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Specializes in ICU,ER.

While I do realize there is a shortage of nurses.....I also believe that Hospital Administrations love the media hype about the whole Nursing Shortage. It's a perfect scapegoat for saving themselves a couple of bucks while sticking it to us.

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http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/eletters/25/1/204

..."Minimum ratios save lives. Patients deserve no less. The hospital industry needs to recognize the facts and stop fighting minimum ratios. That looks very bad, and that is a bad case for business."... - Katrina A. Howard, RN

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Specializes in Hospice, Med/Surg, ICU, ER.

To "for profit" hospital corporations, EVERYTHING is about the bottom line.

Personally, I'd like to see about three huge jury awards per week for this kind of penny-wise pound-foolishness. Bean-counters will begin to understand when their yearly profits and bonuses go up in smoke due to jury awards.

The shame of it is that patients have to suffer/die to bring this kettle to a boil.

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Specializes in Med-Surg.
..."Minimum ratios save lives. Patients deserve no less. The hospital industry needs to recognize the facts and stop fighting minimum ratios. That looks very bad, and that is a bad case for business."... - Katrina A. Howard, RN

'nuff said.

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the fault isn't this individual nurse (i'm sure though that she feels responsible). however, management that allow this should be held accountable.-from traumarus

traumarus....amen!unsafe staffing...you bet management should be accountable.when management leaves a nurse stranded in an unsafe staffing scenario it is simply a "unsafe delegation"....and they have failed to make patient safety their priority. everyone wants to point fingers at the rn.....what about the manager who sat on their a**...at home while all this occurred?i think that...is criminal neglect.

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Specializes in Hospice, Med/Surg, ICU, ER.
everyone wants to point fingers at the rn.....what about the manager who sat on their a**...at home while all this occurred?i think that...is criminal neglect.

amen!

i think a good prosecutor could make a case for that. also, if death occurs as a result, a case could be mader for 2nd degree murder/depraved indifference.

let just one person from tptb get sent to jail for a couple of years; i'll bet you see an industry-wide change for the better.

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