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Nurses advance patient safety legislation at Capitol
10 February 2013
| ST. PAUL - More than 200 nurses from across the state descended onto the Minnesota State Capitol to tell lawmakers patients are slipping through the cracks, and that a new bill, the Standards of Care Act, must pass to ensure the safety of hospital patients in Minnesota. |
The bill takes a fresh approach to a foundational goal of professional nursing in Minnesota of minimizing risk to patients whenever they are in the acute care setting.
The Minnesota Nurses Association is advancing a revised version of proposed legislation the organization has championed since 2008. The Standards of Care Act makes it incumbent upon hospitals to ensure enough nurses are on duty according to patient needs per unit and per shift. The bill further states that, in developing patient assignments, hospitals will abide by nationally accepted, evidence-based standards established by professional specialty nursing organizations. In addition, assignment limits would be adjustable for patient acuity and nursing intensity. The measure would also enforce consequences for facilities that fail to meet these standards.
“Nurses feel we no longer have a choice but to take this issue to the Capitol,” said Colleen Floura, RN at Bemidji Medical Center, “We’re hoping to secure state-wide legislation that ensures staffing standards in acute care hospitals.”
Standards for safe staffing have been studied and set by national nursing organizations. Too often those standards are just not met as hospitals put their profits ahead of patient safety.
“We warn our managers that there is not enough time to provide adequate care for the amount of patients at the level of acuity we are assigned,” said Susan Kreitz, RN of Fairview Lakes Hospital in Wyoming, “and sadly our notice is sometimes met with no response at all or, more often, a hollow “make do.”
More than 60 research studies show that safe RN staffing levels eliminates unnecessary complications, reduces preventable medical errors, and curbs extended hospital stays, thereby reducing risks to patients and saving precious health care dollars.
“Nurses across the state agree that patient safety is the most important issue in hospitals today,” said MNA President Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN, “and they’ve come to the Capitol to ask lawmakers to pass policy that’s good for all Minnesota patients. “
Reprinted from the MNA website. |
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