Nurse Staffing for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2004 will Address Dangerous Patient Care Conditions in Healthcare Facilities

In conjunction with National Nurse Day, Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) today announced new federal legislation that sets mandatory nurse-to-patient staffing standards to protect patients in healthcare facilities. The Nurse Staffing for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2004 establishes minimum staffing levels for different hospital units. Once these minimum levels are met, hospitals will be required to develop staffing plans, in consultation with staff, to meet patient needs in the hospital. Adequate staffing is the number one issue for the more than 3.5 million nurses around the country.

Many hospitals have too few nurses caring for too many patients, leading to thousands of preventable patient deaths and injuries. In partnership with the AFL-CIO, the National Consumers League (NCL) released a poll that investigated the relationship between nurse staffing and patient safety. The survey found nearly half or 45 percent of those who have had direct hospital experience in the past two years believe that their safety or that of a family member was compromised by inadequate nurse staffing levels. More than one-third report not receiving important elements of care in a timely fashion and more than three-quarters support legislative action to improve nurse-to-patient staffing standards.

“We need a federal, safe registered nurse-to-patient ratio law to improve patient care and protect nurses at the bedside,” said Cheryl Johnson, RN, president of the United American Nurses. “If hospitals could be trusted to enforce safe levels of staffing by internal committees, they would have done so already—and that hasn’t happened, even though nurses have called on hospitals to do so.”

“Nurses are stretched beyond the limits of safe and quality health care. We’ve got to set limits to save lives,” said Candice Owley, chair, AFT Healthcare. “This is a safety issue that should not be considered controversial. Patients lives are at stake.”

Rep. Schakowsky’s bill establishes minimum direct care registered nurse-to-staff ratios, the key to reducing nurses’ excessive workload and improving patient outcomes. Recent studies suggest that understaffed healthcare facilities contribute to medical errors that threaten patient safety. A report by The Institute of Medicine recommends raising staffing levels and including information about staffing in report cards on hospitals and nursing homes to reduce medical errors.

"Inadequate staffing is driving nurses out of our hospitals and putting patients at risk," said Martha Baker, a registered nurse and co-chair of the SEIU Nurse Alliance. "By setting the minimum nurse-to-patient ratios proposed in Representative Schakowsky's bill we can provide the quality care patients need."

In California, staffing standards went into effect this January and subsequently, the number of people applying for nurse certification in the state rose by 18 percent. Kaiser Permanente voluntarily enacted ratios in July 2001 and as a result the Northern California branch of Kaiser hired 71 percent more new nurses and the number of nurses quitting declined by 47 percent from January to October 2002. Several other states have introduced staffing standards legislation.

“Through our unique partnership with Kaiser Permanente in California, we have put safe staffing standards in place that allow nurses to deliver quality patient care and save lives,” said Barbara Blake of the United Nurses Association of California/NUHHCE/AFSCME. “The burden now rests with members of Congress to support federal legislation that protects patients in every state.”

The following AFL-CIO unions are participating in the nurse campaign: American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE); American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); American Federation of Teachers-Healthcare (AFT); Communications Workers of America (CWA); Service Employees International Union-Nurse Alliance (SEIU); United American Nurses (UAN); United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW); Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA); United Auto Workers (UAW); International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE); and Teamsters (IBT).

For more information visit  www.nclnet.org.

Contact Suzanne Ffolkes 202-637-5018 or Nadeam Elshami 202-226-6903