nurse patiens ratio??

[CINDY SUNG]

Dear Sir or Madam:

We’re writing from a General Hospital in Taiwan.

Recently, we are going to move on a study about nurse-patient ratio. So we really appreciate that your consult.

We’re would like to know about how many Nurses (RN) take care for patients during the day shift and middle shift, night shift? Is there having LPN for assist? Especially we are curious about nurse –patient ratio in Pediatric of Hematology. Like 1(RN): 6(P’T) or 1(RN):8(P’T)?

Also we’re wanted to know the same ratio for the Oncology (Adult).

Thank you for your sharing hope can hear from you soon.

[nrsang97, BSN, RN]

I don't work oncology. I do work in the neuro surg ICU and we have usually 1 rn to 1 or 2 patients.

when I worked a general unit (medical patients) we would have 1 rn to 6-8 patients on day and afternoon (middle) and 1 rn to 6-10 patients on nights. this is with a nurse assistant who does vitals and blood sugars on 12-24 patients. this was a 48 bed unit with up to 4 nurse assistants on all shifts.

LPN's worked and took a full patient load and did not give IVP meds or take phone orders from docs. The charge if no assignment would do these things for them or another nurse would do for them.

I hope this helps, since I don't work with children. I am not sure what the ratios are.

[wayunderpaid]

Work in oncology. Specialty unit with 25 beds.

Day 7-3: Ideal 4:1, acceptable 5:1

Evening 3-11: Ideal 4:1 (Usually pick up an extra patient at 7 pm), acceptable 5-6:1

Night 11-7: Ideal, 6-7:1, acceptable 8:1 (usually from 3-7 in the morning)

This unit has the following shifts which would account for unusual patient ratios:

7a-3p

3p-11p

11p-7a

7a-7p

11a-11p

3p-3a

7p-7a

3a-3p

Ours is a well staffed unit with no agency nurses or travelers. Charge nurse does not take patients from 7a-7p. Night charge nurse takes regular load.

Wayunderpaid

[ohmeowzer RN, RN]

i am a RN and when i work med surg we have 6 to 1 when i work postpartum i have 4 to one. i like post partum much better... lol...

[PHM]

Hi Cindy, "Ni Hau Ma?"

Interesting you ask this. Which hospital are you at?

I just returned from 3 weeks in Feng Yuan, Taiwan. We were there to visit my mother-in-law and for the last week she had been admitted to Feng Yuan Hospital for a high fever and leg infection.

I was surprised to find the nurse patient ratio on the med-surg floor was routinely 1:13 on dayshift and 1:20 on nightshift. I was impressed by the staff and the doctors who cared for her.

Our floor is a combination step-down and pulmonary floor. Dayshift ratios are typically 1:5 for stepdown and 1:7 for pulmonary. Night shift stepdown is still 1:5 but pumonary can go as high as 1:8. LPNs are used in the same capacity as RNs, but require certification in some areas and are supervised/co-signed by an RN on assessments.

Hope this helps,

Phil RN

[Skrawberri]

At the medsurg unit I work at there are no more than 6 patients per nurse. We can't get more than that. If we are short on nurses, we just stop accepting patients on our floor.