Nursing Staff in Hospitals and Nursing Homes

Offering a look at the health care system, this volume discusses work-related injuries, violence toward and abuse of nursing staffs, and stress among nursing personnel. Examining whether these problems are related to staffing levels, it provides an examination of complex issues surrounding the role and value of nursing.

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Hospitals and nursing homes are responding to changes in the health care system by modifying staffing levels and the mix of nursing personnel. But do these changes endanger the quality of patient care? Do nursing staff suffer increased rates of injury, illness, or stress because of changing workplace demands?


These questions are addressed in Nursing Staff in Hospitals and Nursing Homes, a thorough and authoritative look at today's health care system that also takes a long-term view of staffing needs for nursing as the nation moves into the next century. The committee draws fundamental conclusions about the evolving role of nurses in hospitals and nursing homes and presents recommendations about staffing decisions, nursing training, measurement of quality, reimbursement, and other areas. The volume also discusses work-related injuries, violence toward and abuse of nursing staffs, and stress among nursing personnel?and examines whether these problems are related to staffing levels. Included is a readable overview of the underlying trends in health care that have given rise to urgent questions about nurse staffing: population changes, budget pressures, and the introduction of new technologies. Nursing Staff in Hospitals and Nursing Homes provides a straightforward examination of complex and sensitive issues surround the role and value of nursing on our health care system.


Table of Contents


Front Matter
Summary
1 Introduction
2 Implications of Population Change
3 Evolving Health Care Scene
4 Nursing Personnel in a Time of Change
5 Staffing and Quality of Care in Hospitals
6 Staffing and Quality of Care in Nursing Homes
7 Staffing and Work-Related Injuries and Stress
8 Epilogue
Appendixes
Appendix A: Presentations Made to the Committee
Appendix B: Liaison Panel
Appendix C: Separate Statement and Responses
Appendix D: Acronyms
References
Biographical Sketches of Committee Members
Part II: Resources for the Study
1 Study Activities
2 Statistical Resources
3 Commissioned Papers
Quality of Care, Organizational Variables, and Nurse Staffing
Professional Nursing Education - Today and Tomorrow
Nursing Staff and Quality of Care in Nursing Homes
Quality of Care and Nursing Staff in Nursing Homes
Nursing Facility Quality, Staffing, and Economic Issues
Nursing Injury, Stress, and Nursing Care
Index