4 : 1 nurse patient ratio for med surg???

[student456]

Hi,

Most RN's at my my nursing clinicals tell me their nurse patient ratio for med surg is 4 : 1 and sometimes 5 : 1 (in Canada)

When you nurses in the USA talk about high pt ratios like 7 or 10 to one nurse, are you talking about having that many patients strictly as an RN by yourself or do you all have LPN's and CNA's that help you? If its that many patients without having any LPN's etc, that must be very hard to manage all those people and provide safe nursing care!

In all the hospitals that I've been at, the ratio is 4 or 5 to 1 RN without any assistance. Is that a good ratio?

[CHATSDALE]

yes, there is assistance, usually on a team there will be one rn plus a lpn or other rn, and one/two cnas

you can do total care on 4-5 patients [depending on the status of the patient]

i worked in a hospital setting where i was told that the patients were rated as to need and assigned to nurses on that basis...when i went to work they divided the nursing loads according to the number of rooms so one nurse might have two fresh from icu cabgs and a couple of heart cath patients and another nurse might have mostly ambulartory patients in for tests

it is the number of patients that ae most important but if it is possible to give them the type of care that they need

[floatRN]

I wish we had only 4 patients! I usually have 5 or 6 on day shift. Sometimes even 7. We have a CNA, but she has at least 10 patients, so it is still extremely hard to give all the patients the attention I'd like to.

[loriangel14, RN]

I work in a complex continuing care hospital and on day shift our ratio is 4:1 but we have no help, we are doing all our cares. Evenings is usually 6:1. The pts range in acuity so sometimes 4 isn't bad and sometimes it is a a handful.

[Nurse Salt]

In California the law mandates no more than 5:1 and in specialty areas the ratio is even lower. Although some hospitals have lowered their ratio in med-surg to 4:1.

[BookwormRN]

On our Med/surg unit, we usually have 4-5 pts on evenings, sometimes up to 6, sometimes only 3. Depends on our acuity and census.

We usually have 2 CNAs on the floor-thank heavens! I could never do total cares on everyone AND do my other necessary tasks.

[Peri]

Wow 4:1. I worked on a busy Arterial/General Surgical ward.

There were 34 patients - two RN's and two NA's

[november17, ASN, RN]

We do 6:1 on nights with a CNA assisting. If we're alone, we handle 5.

[KaroSnowQueen, RN]

in my city/state, the lpns are responsible for their own patients. we do assessments (other than the initial admit), med, treatements, charting. we will often have 7 or 8 patients to ourself, with the rns having just as many themselves. we can give iv push meds, so the only thing that the charge rn does is help us hang blood and the initial admit assessment.

we do have cnas assigned to the patients (often in a 10:1 ratio). however, my last on-the-floor job was on a telemetry floor, so we were all very busy and a ratio of 4 patients to one nurse would be heaven. having 8 patients is unsafe in my opinion.

[ohmeowzer RN, RN]

we have 6:1 days shift

and 7:1 night shift

no LPN's

3 CNA's for 31 patients days

2 CNA's on night shift for 31 patients

[jenni26]

Hi I work in Indiana on a med/surg floor. I have worked there since 2003 and I on a rare ocassion have I started out with 4 patients. The usual is 5-6 and then I get admissions so I either end up with 6 or 7 sometimes even 8 by the end of the shift. I have always felt this is very unsafe for both the patients and the nurse. I do have a CNAs working with me but they have 8-12 patients. It is very overwhelming.Then the hospital wants to talk abou over time come on!!

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

Best argument I have seen for safe staffing laws....

During clinicals I only saw one nurse who was holding a 6:1 patient load. Most of the time it was 4/5:1. 2:1 on the ICU floor.

I am starting my first job next month. It sounds like it will be a 4:1 ratio.