postpartum/couplet staffing ratio

[lmc512]

I am curious to know what everyones nurse to patient staffing ratios are on the postpartum floor. Does your unit consider mom and baby seperate patients when counting patients or do you consider a "couplet" to be one patient for staffing purposes.

Where I work now we count them seperately, so typically one RN will have 5-6 pts total. Where I used to work we counted couplets and usually had 6 or 7 couplets (so technically 12-14 pts total despite what administration thought)

What about where you work?

(this is only postpartum not antepartm/ L&D as well)

[SmilingBluEyes]

I work LDRP so we do it all. If you are labor nurse, we try to keep it 1:1 or 1:2. If you do PP, you will generally get an assignment of 4 couplets. We are also a GYN surgical floor, so we do have to mix it up a bit....say 2 couplets and a couple "gynies".

This is at a smallish community hospital at which about 70 births/month occur.

[Jolie, BSN]

Where I used to work we counted couplets and usually had 6 or 7 couplets (so technically 12-14 pts total despite what administration thought.

This is nuts (not to mention a violation of AWHONN standards). Since administration considers mom & baby to equal 1 patient from a staffing standpoint, it would be inconsistent for them to submit bills for both.

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

If we have strictly couplets, we generally have 4-5 couplets. When we get our assignment, we have only Mom's last name below our names. So we don't know when we get that pt if she has a baby with her or if baby's in NICU.

I would absolutely refuse an assignment of more than 5 couplets, and even that's pushing it.

[Woodholl]

our staffing allows 1:3 on day and night shifts. Very rarely do we take more than that -- like once a year or so. Our hospital considers that is giving a nurse 6 patients and that's enough.

[kat7ap]

Where I work now we count them seperately, so typically one RN will have 5-6 pts total. Where I used to work we counted couplets and usually had 6 or 7 couplets quote]

6-7 couplets??? How is that even possible or safe??? I could not imagine that... I sure hope you had your own PCT helping you out. On my unit our day shift (7-3) usually has 3 couplets at a time, evenings (3-11) has 3-4 at a time, and nights (11-7) takes usually 4 sometimes 5 couplets. We normally have only one PCT for about every 15 rooms if we are lucky, so it's pretty much total care from the LPNs/RNs. Of course my hospital has an outrageously high C/S rate so usually those patients are more needy.

[Baby1nurse]

The hospital where I work, we do about 125 deliveries a month, considers a couplet to be one patient but our ratio is usually 3:1 on day shift and 4:1 on night shift - we work twelve hour shifts. We also have techs who do vitals, stock rooms, help with first time OOB's and bathing. When we are really busy or hopelessly understaffed because of call outs, we will have 4:1 or 5:1 with an LPN to assist.