Max pt load? Florida

[hwarner1995]

I am a CNA in the state of Florida working at a hospital. I was wondering if there is a maximum number of PT's we are legally allowed to take on. Our floor usually tries not to give more than 15/CNA when we are short but lately they have been threatening to give us 16-18. I think this is highly unsafe and quite frankly I would rather walk out the door than to take that many PT's. Am I legally allowed to do this? I can't really find anything relating to this in our employee policies. Thank you in advance

[hookyarnandblanket]

Theoretically, you could walk out but it might be considered patient abandonment. Contact your state BON and find out if there is a guideline to patient load.

[Paws2people]

My unit at a hospital holds 31. It's not uncommon to have the whole unit, or half. I would never walk out. Worse thing you just do the best you can. It's unrealistic that you'd be able to give quality care to that many patients. Unfortunately it's the patients that suffer the most if you walk out.

[MetallicPanda93]

"Florida

Florida's 2001 legislation sets separate minimum patient care hour staffing standards for nurses and certified nursing assistants (CNAs). Like Arkansas, they are phased in over three years. The legislation required the Agency for Health Care Administration to adopt regulations setting minimum daily resident care hours for CNAs at 2.3 hours in 2002, 2.6 hours in 2003, and 2.9 hours in 2004 and afterward. It sets a minimum CNA-to-patient ratio of 1:20. Licensed nurses must provide a minimum of one hour a day in direct service to residents, and a facility must have at least one licensed nurse for every 40 residents.

The regulations must permit counting nurses' hours as part of the CNA staffing minimums as long as the nurses are performing CNA duties for their entire shift and the facility meets the minimum 1:40 nurse-to-resident ratio. Nurses counted toward the CNA minimum cannot be counted towards the licensed nurse minimum ratio (FSA § 400.23, as amended by Ch. 2001-45)." https://www.cga.ct.gov/2002/rpt/2002-R-0091.htm