The Benefit of Low Nurse-Patient Ratios

For my research paper, I will be taking the position that low nurse-patient ratios (the number of patients a nurse is assigned to care for during their shift) are beneficial to patient safety and should be adopted on a larger scale.

What made you interested in this topic?

I am interested in this topic because when I graduated from nursing school last year, I accepted a job where I am comfortable with my workload, while many of my classmates ended up in work environments where they are responsible for taking care of as many as 9 patients at a time while working as the Charge Nurse on the unit. Several have expressed to me that they feel their patients aren't safe because of the workload they face as nurses.

How is it related to your field of study, major, or to what you plan on doing after you graduate?

This is directly related to my Nursing major and current practice as an RN. I have a personal interest in making sure I am practicing in a way that is safe for my patients.

What exactly is the problem?

The problem, as defined for my argument research paper, is that to cut costs, hospitals have been steadily increasing the number of patients nurses must care for. In many areas it's not uncommon for one nurse to have to assess, give medications to, and manage the care of as many as 12 patients. This puts tremendous strain on nurses. Many of the studies I have seen in my research indicate that a high ration of patients to nurses increases the rate of death or other poor outcomes for patients. It also leads to increased nurse burnout and higher turnover, though at this point I believe my paper will focus on patient outcomes.

Who is most affected by the problem?

Anyone who is a patient in a hospital is likely to be affected by these practices.

What causes the problem?

The problem is caused by finances. Hospitals claim they face declining reimbursements, and have chosen to cut nursing staff to lower their expenses.

Has anyone tried to do anything about it? If so, why haven’t they succeeded?

California has attempted to solve the problem by implementing maximum allowable legal patient ratios. In California (and Australia, where a similar set of laws has been passed), there has been success – but, obviously, this is limited to those areas and isn't widespread.