Matching nursing levels to patient needs leads to safer care
2 min read - 19 Dec 2022
The problem
When patients get the appropriate level of nursing care they need, they do better. But how can you tell how many nurses and healthcare assistants (HCAs) are needed in a hospital ward or emergency department at any given time?
The project
Researchers at UCC worked with the Department of Health Taskforce on Safe Nurse Staffing and Skill Mix to identify how many nurses and HCAs are required in hospital wards and emergency departments in Ireland based on patient need.
The outcomes
- The safe staffing framework, along with new computer software, was deployed in medical and surgical wards to allow nursing managers to calculate patients’ nursing needs and safe staffing levels in real time
- The introduction of the safe nurse staffing framework has led to fewer adverse events among patients, reduced burnout among nursing staff, lower staff turnover in hospitals and a lower reliance on agency nurses to provide care
- A new approach based on patient need was also established to help emergency departments identify safe nurse staffing levels. This led to patients receiving care more quickly and reducing the number who leave without being seen
- The Framework is being established nationally in hospitals across Ireland
- The researchers are currently developing a model to identify safe nurse staffing levels in nursing homes.
Jonathan Drennan, Professor of Nursing and Health Services Research, UCC, says:
“We found that taking a systematic approach to matching patient needs with nursing requirements has a tremendous impact on the services and provision of safe care. Because we work closely with the Department of Health and the Office of the Chief Nursing Officer, the models aew currently being put into practice nationally, improving the working life of nursing staff and increasing patient safety.”
“Matching nursing levels to patient needs leads to safer care” is part of a wider collection of success stories across four themes from this year’s annual Health Research in Action. Download the full publication.
2 min read - 19 Dec 2022