We are usually understaffed and out of ratio.
Here at Holy Cross we see a lot of Patients, many nights our Emergency Room is filled with patients being held because the lack of staff to care for those patients in the units they are admitted to. This back up puts many nurses out of ratio. We also have and area known as RME where a single nurse can have up to 25+ patients assigned to them at any given time... Does this seem safe to you? Are you willing to continue to work harder putting your License at risk to boost corporate profits? This is unfair to place nurses in this situation because we do what is best for our patients even if it means putting ourselves at risk and the hospital knows it. California has specific staffing ratios for the safety of nurses and patients known as Title 22. Although PHC states it complies with Title 22 there is no enforcement of it and it is usually ignored. With a union in place we can guarantee enforcement of our ratios and make sure our patients receive the best quality of care.California Ratios are great but there is better!
The nurse to patient staffing ratios in California are a great start. However we know from evidence based research that the quality of care increases and errors decrease when nurses have less patients. UNAC has been a champion for RNs fighting for better ratios for safety. Look at what they have achieved at their Kaiser Hospitals. This is about patient and nurse safety, not profits.
California Nurse-to-Patient Ratios
Effective: January 1, 2008| Hospital Unit | California Department of Health Services (for Non-Kaiser Hospitals) | UNAC-Kaiser Ratios |
|---|---|---|
| Critical Care/ICU | 1:2 | 1:2 |
| Neonatal ICU | 1:2 | 1:2 |
| Intermediate Care/Continuing Care Nursery | 1:6 | 1:4 |
| Perinatal Services | ||
| Labor & Delivery | 1:2 | 1:2 |
| Postpartum | 1:8 (4 couplets) | 1:6 (3 couplets) |
| Well-Baby Nursery | 1:8 | 1:6 |
| Postanesthesia (PACU) | 1:2 | 1:2 |
| Emergency Department | ||
| Trauma | 1:1 | 1:1 |
| Critical Care | 1:2 | 1:2 |
| Visits | 1:4 | 1:3 |
| Operating Room | 1:1 | 1:1 |
| Pediatrics | 1:4 | 1:3 |
| Stepdown | 1:3 | 1:3 |
| Telemetry | 1:4 | 1:3 |
| Medical/Surgical | 1:5 | 1:4 |
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