Nurse-Patient ratios in rehab?

Specialties Rehabilitation

Published

Just curious as to what nurse to patient ratios are like in your acute rehab settings? Also, how do you feel about the ratio?

CURRENT 2017-2018 Acute Rehabilitation Nursing Ratios?

Anyone willing to update us on what is the norm now? CMG 1.2, CMG 1.3, CMG 1.4, CMG 1.5, CMG 1.6, CMG 1.7, CMG 1.8?

We have an 18-bed unit with a CMG that runs 1.5 to 1.9 with 1:4 ratio for 2 RNs (at night sometimes 1 RN, 1 CNA, depending on the number of tubes, flushes, dressings, etc)

Thanks!

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Specializes in Acute care and rehabilitation.

I work in inpatient rehab. We get a lot patients that no one else would take because we're expected to offload the hospital that frequently goes on diversion. We're the only rehab in our area that will take a pt on peritineal dialysis. We have a lot of tube feeds, iv antibiotics, and wound Vacs. And when a patient gets sick we don't get to send them away in an ambulance. We call a rapid response and a team of people assess the situation, many times the pt will stay on our unit because they say we can manage them. Usually only new stroke, PE, MI or need for telemetry monitoring will move them to another unit. With all that being said our ratios are usually 6 to 1 and you can expect to do 2-3 discharges and admits every day with staff of 3 nurses and 3 CNAs if we're adequately staffed.. a huge difference I notice with staffing ratios and doability is the burden of EMR/eMARs vs paper charts. They each have their benefits but computerized everything is a huge time sucker.

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I think those of you with high patient ratios are working in long term care such as SNF. This would not be the same environment as Inpatient Rehabilitation. Those patients are more acute and require more care.

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I work 18 to 1. They sometimes have wound vacs or feeding tubes; occasionally trachs.  IV antibiotics too. The rest is physical and occupational therapy. We usually have 2 aides. It's extremely difficult with one aid. I work 3-11 as well and get all of the admissions.

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I work with anywhere from 13 to 19 patients. I find once I get over 15 it starts to get really tough. Everything is fine of all I'm doing is standard care - med  pass, G-Tubes, IVs, TPN etc. Once any slight thing happens, such as a patient starts to go downhill or there's a fall or an IV needs to be placed, then my day starts to tank. 

Since Covid hit, the acuity of the patients has risen...hospitals are pushing people out to make way for Covid patients, and we also seem to get patients that they just don't want to deal with. 

The end result is that patient care is weakened, and small things that can have significant consequences get overlooked. I love SNF work, I love the patients, and I love my colleagues, but the patient to nurse ratio is terrible. When I did rotations in acute care, they were upset if they got over 1:6. That would be a dream to me . 

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I work nights in an acute drug and alcohol rehab. We have 140 clients. Admit 14 ppl a day. Med pass there is 3 cnas and me (RN) for 4 unit. After 11 there is an Ma, counselor, CNA and me watching them all…anyone see what’s wrong with this picture? 

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21 hours ago, Mrslewey said:

I work nights in an acute drug and alcohol rehab. We have 140 clients. Admit 14 ppl a day. Med pass there is 3 cnas and me (RN) for 4 unit. After 11 there is an Ma, counselor, CNA and me watching them all…anyone see what’s wrong with this picture? 

Hold up - are you saying your nurse to patient ratio is 1:140??????????????

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Yep! And usually 2-3 medical assistants 

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Specializes in Home Health Care.
On 5/23/2021 at 1:19 AM, Mrslewey said:

Yep! And usually 2-3 medical assistants 

Sounds like a recipe for massive death numbers, like a war when all the Medics get killed except a handful and you got 140 soldiers to patch up just so they don't die and can still hold a gun.

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