Nurse Staffing Costs

Nurses Professionalism

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When hospitals look to cut costs -- as many of them have in the last decade -- nurses are the hardest hit. How has your employer dealt with staffing costs? How has it impacted you?

Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
We have been reducing hours and eliminating positions. Last week, one of the senior managers came to the unit and asked why a call bell was ringing repeatedly.

Seriously?? What would you expect with a ratio of 1:9?

Why didn't the senior manager answer it? BWAHAHAHAHA!

Rhetoric, how I love thee!

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Last week, one of the senior managers came to the unit and asked why a call bell was ringing repeatedly.

Seriously?? What would you expect with a ratio of 1:9?

And let me guess... The senior manager didn't bother to answer the call light the entire time it had been ringing. Is my guess correct?
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Specializes in Family Practice, Mental Health.
When hospitals look to cut costs -- as many of them have in the last decade -- nurses are the hardest hit. How has your employer dealt with staffing costs? How has it impacted you?

Would you be so kind as to state as exactly as possible, how many MAGNET hospitals you (or your firm) are currently consulting in, along with how many MAGNET hospitals you have consulted with in the past?

Thank you.

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Specializes in Emergency, Trauma, Critical Care.

You get what you pay for....cheap materials result frequently in waste. Our perfectly fine tubings and needles got replaced for cheaper material. Half the time now the tubing doesn't work or we have to switch the needle because the safety doesn't close right and someone got stabbed. Our manager switched our carts to get changed out every other day instead of daily; resulting in running out of cups for pts, now we offer them cups in graduated cylinders. One time I couldn't find anything and patient said ill take a urinal. How's that for press gainey?

Frustrating, I worked for an insurance company and went back to bedside. I can tell you nurses probably aren't the main problem.

However this is a generalized question, each unit functions differently so to broadly ask that question it wouldn't be efficient or appropriate to make the same changes across the board.

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OK, OP here's a thought. Every CEO, CFO, C3PO take half their salary. So instead of make a million, they "make due" with a 500K year. With that extra money, ensure that every unit gets staffed appropriately.

Take a great number of per diems, part timers, yes even weekenders. So that every nurse gets their vacations, days off, heck even lunch. (ie: my dream part time job would be 11-2--or even 6p-9p--so that others can have a lunch).

Have a well paid and well respected CNA staff. Send anyone who wants to the ability to attend college to advance their studies--so the nurse educator (who should be an actual practicing nurse) could have a few on staff for this purpose--as well as nurses who are into precepting (and there are a great deal who like to do this).

Make it so that nurses can move up the ranks--from charge, to manager, to unit manager....

Invest in the nurses. Invest in creating an atmosphere that is conductive to amazing patient care. But don't spit on our heads and call it rain.

Sigh.. will never work. It makes too much sense.

AND it's coming from a nurse .. that's been there done that.. instead of a high -price outside consulting firm.:banghead:

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And let me guess... The senior manager didn't bother to answer the call light the entire time it had been ringing. Is my guess correct?

Why, Commuter, that is NOT the senior managers JOB!! And instead of saying "well, THIS is an issue that needs to be addressed" they will hunt down any nurse within a 10 mile radius to take care of it. But argue for an hour about how they are "practicing nurses". Practicing in what, exactly, is unclear...

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I agree wholeheartedly. But, to be fair, we wouldn't need health care consultants if hospitals were managed more efficiently/effectively.

"we wouldn't need health care consultants if hospitals were managed more efficiently/effectively. "

The ultimate paradox.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
To stew:

What your agency's fee structure for an individual client, hospital or healthcare system?

The AVERAGE consultant fee is approximately $150.00 - $250.00/hr

Consultants play down the importance of their financial ties to vendors and say they are part of the solution to rising health-care costs. "Health-care finance and delivery are...not the core mission of most employers," says Robert O'Brien, the head of health and benefits consulting at Mercer, a unit of Marsh & McLennan mmc -0.27% Cos. "We help employers manage the expense and complexity of their health and benefits programs in a way that maximizes their value for employees."

A handful of consulting giants such as Mercer, Hewitt Associates, Lincolnshire, Ill., and Towers Perrin, Stamford, Conn., dominate the benefits-consulting business, but smaller ones also thrive working with local employers. Mercer says it expects its health-benefits consulting business to bring in revenue of $526 million this year.

Health-Care Consultants Reap Fees From Those They Evaluate - WSJ

This article was from 2006

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Sigh.. will never work. It makes too much sense.

AND it's coming from a nurse .. that's been there done that.. instead of a high -price outside consulting firm.:banghead:

Often, when we arrive on site, there are those within the organization who have great ideas to solve systemic issues, but there is too much disagreement to move those ideas forward. In those situations, our best approach is to help those individuals move their ideas forward by refining them and gaining consensus from recalcitrant stakeholders.

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Would you be so kind as to state as exactly as possible, how many MAGNET hospitals you (or your firm) are currently consulting in, along with how many MAGNET hospitals you have consulted with in the past?

Thank you.

Just one.

Nine out of ten times, when a hospital hires our firm, it's either because (a) they're struggling to keep the hospital open, or (b) they're struggling to compete with the Magnet hospital down the street.

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Specializes in hospice.
Stew - Two points I'd like to make here: First, you have come into our "home" here. It behooves you to treat our family members (even the somewhat snarky ones) with a measure of respect.

Maybe the users here should provide a good example of that, then. This person came here to get opinions from nurses. S/He obviously wants your input. I really don't understand why people felt justified in immediately attacking him/her.

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Often, when we arrive on site, there are those within the organization who have great ideas to solve systemic issues, but there is too much disagreement to move those ideas forward. In those situations, our best approach is to help those individuals move their ideas forward by refining them and gaining consensus from recalcitrant stakeholders.

So... the leaders that are paid to lead, cannot decide how to lead.

Then spend more big bucks.. in order to come together to make a decision.

Quite sure their large egos are also a hindrance to communication and decision making.

Meanwhile... in the bowels of the hospital.. a nurse with 9 patients is coding one of them.

Excuse me while I ...:banghead::banghead::banghead:

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