How many patients do you have on each shift?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Just curious

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
Never knew there was a rule on how you report it... we always talk about the number of patients to nurses (ie 6 patients: 1 nurse). Maybe its a Canadian thing - or maybe you're just being pedantic?

It could be a bit of both!

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Specializes in Adult Psychiatry, Correctional/Forensic Psychiatry.

Acute Psychiatry, Day Shift- 3 Pts, Evenings- 3-5 Pts.

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Specializes in Med/Surge, Psych, LTC, Home Health.

I work in a small critical access hospital. My medsurge floor does not hire

techs. Our patients generally are not very sick. Many of them are actually

there for rehab. Ratio is generally 1:1 to 1:4.

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Tele/oncology floor (mix of active chemo, heart/respiratory issues including many trachs/feeding tubes etc). 1:6 ratio days and nights :o

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I work in a small critical access hospital. My medsurge floor does not hire

techs. Our patients generally are not very sick. Many of them are actually

there for rehab. Ratio is generally 1:1 to 1:4.

I wanna work here, lol!

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Specializes in ICU.

On days? 3. Night's up to 5.

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Specializes in Neuroscience.

Nights, Neurosurgery PC is 1:3. We have one tech for 6 patients.

I know, it's pretty sweet.

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.

Pediatric critical care - usually 1:1 or 1:2....occasionally a patient will be 2:1. Plus charge nurse with no patients, a resource nurse with no patients, and 2 techs for about 24 beds.

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On days? 3. Night's up to 5.

holy that's like perfection. On a rare day I go down to 4 and that's when I can do everything that they want me to do. I can have conversations with my patients, actually edumacate them on their meds. All that HCAHP metrics.

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In California, we have mandatory staffing ratios in acute care settings. You cannot exceed 5 med-surg or 4 telemetry. If you have any telemetry patients, you cannot have more than 4 patients total.

I typically have no more than 4 patients, a combination of tele and M-S. Occasionally I will have 5 med-surge but if I have 5, a few of them will be pretty easy.

CALIFORNIA RATIOS

Type of Care - RN to Patients

Intensive/Critical Care 1:2

Neo-natal Intensive Care 1:2

Operating Room 1:1

Post-anesthesia Recovery 1:2

Labor and Delivery 1:2

Antepartum 1:4

Postpartum couplets 1:4

Postpartum women only 1:6

Pediatrics 1:4

Emergency Room 1:4

ICU Patients in the ER 1:2

Trauma Patients in the ER 1:1

Step Down 1:3

Telemetry 1:4

Medical/Surgical 1:5

Other Specialty Care 1:4

Psychiatric 1:6

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

CALIFORNIA RATIOS

Type of Care - RN to Patients

Intensive/Critical Care 1:2

Neo-natal Intensive Care 1:2

Operating Room 1:1

Post-anesthesia Recovery 1:2

Labor and Delivery 1:2

Antepartum 1:4

Postpartum couplets 1:4

Postpartum women only 1:6

Pediatrics 1:4

Emergency Room 1:4

ICU Patients in the ER 1:2

Trauma Patients in the ER 1:1

Step Down 1:3

Telemetry 1:4

Medical/Surgical 1:5

Other Specialty Care 1:4

Psychiatric 1:6

Oregon is similar, except that instead of spelling out what the ratio should be, Oregon law states that it should, whenever possible, be based on your professional organization's guidelines/recommendations. The law requires that every unit has a staffing plan, and you are held to that staffing plan or you are in violation. Our unit's staffing ratios are actually more strict than California's. We actually go buy AWHONN's staffing guidelines. If we don't, we could be fined.

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Specializes in LTC, SNF, Rehab, Hospice.

LTC 1:30

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