Hospital Understaffing and Poor Work Conditions Associated with Physician and Nurse Burnout and Intent to Leave

A unique collaborative study on hospital clinician wellbeing by teams at 60 of the nation’s best hospitals, defined by Magnet Hospital Recognition, was published today in JAMA Health Forum. The study found that physicians and nurses, even at hospitals known to be good places to work, experienced adverse outcomes during the pandemic and want hospital management to make significant improvements in their work environments and in patient safety. The solutions to high hospital clinician burnout and turnover, they say, are not resilience training for clinicians to better cope with adverse working conditions but organizational improvements that provide safe workloads and better work-life balance.

Better Staffed Hospitals Before Pandemic Had Better Outcomes During It

According to a new study published in Nursing Outlook, the journal of the American Academy of Nursing, chronic hospital nurse understaffing and poor hospital work environments that predated the Covid-19 pandemic largely explain the disruptions in nursing care seen during the pandemic and continuing today.

Hospitals with More Inpatient Nurse Practitioners Linked to Better Outcomes, More Satisfied Patients

According to a new study published today in Medical Care, hospitals that employ more inpatient nurse practitioners (NPs) have lower surgical mortality, higher patient satisfaction, and lower costs of care. Nurse practitioners are registered nurses (RNs) with advanced graduate education and expanded legal scope of practice to prescribe treatments including pain medications.

Nurse Work Environment Influences Stroke Outcomes

Stroke remains a leading cause of death worldwide and one of the most common reasons for disability. While a wide variety of factors influence stroke outcomes, data show that avoiding readmissions and long lengths of stay among ischemic stroke patients has benefits for patients and health care systems alike. Although reduced readmission rates among various medical patients have been associated with better nurse work environments, it is unknown how the work environment might influence readmissions and length of stay for ischemic stroke patients.

New York State’s Hospital Nurse Staffing Legislation Predicted to Save Lives and Money

According to a new study published in Medical Care, improving hospital nurse staffing as proposed in pending legislation in New York state would likely save lives. The cost of improving nurse staffing would be offset by savings achieved by reducing hospital readmissions and length of hospital stays.

Wide Variation Across Hospitals in Nurse Staffing Is Threat to Public’s Health

According to a new study published today in BMJ Quality & Safety, many hospitals in New York and Illinois were understaffed right before the first surge of critically ill Covid-19 patients. The study, “Chronic Hospital Nurse Understaffing Meets Covid-19,” documented staffing ratios that varied from 3 to 10 patients for each nurse on general adult medical and surgical units. ICU nurse staffing was better but also varied significantly across hospitals.

Calling for Nursing Support Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

There are close to 28 million nurses around the world who comprise a global workforce that delivers about 90 percent of primary healthcare, including frontline response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ensuring their optimal contribution and continued well-being amid the myriad consequences of COVID-19 will increase the potential for measurable and improved health outcomes.

Nursing Research Informs Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

Nursing research has an important influence on evidence-based health care practice, care delivery, and policy. Two editorials in the journal Research in Nursing & Health, by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing), explore how nursing research has been paramount in dealing with the emerging coronavirus pandemic.