SEIU_Staffing_Cont
(Continued)
"The California experience shows that RN-to-patient ratios alone do not guarantee adequate staffing in hospitals," said SEIU 1199 President Becky Williams. "California nurses say that understaffing is still their biggest obstacle to providing high quality care."
An analysis of California hospital data just released by SEIU 1199 shows that while RN staffing increased 6.1% between 2003 and 2006, non-RN staffing declined. Hardest hit were licensed vocational nurses and nurse aides, the direct caregivers on whom registered nurses rely most heavily for help.
Click here to see the fact sheet.
"Nurse-to-patient ratios in California came at an unexpectedly high price, and the cost was the safety of our patients," said Kathy Hughes, an SEIU member and registered nurse in California. "Cuts in ancillary staff have increased our workloads and made it harder to provide safe and high-quality care. Nurses all over our state are saying nurse-to-patient ratios alone don’t work."