The BC Nurses Union could say “I told you so,” after a new study finds that establishing minimum nurse-to-patient ratios is better for everyone in the hospital system.
A report from the University of Pennsylvania says that a minimum ratio contributes to better health outcomes for patients.
The study also found a safer working environment and an improved staff retention system for an already strained health-care system.
BC Nurses Union spokesperson Adriane Gear says the study linked minimum ratios to lower patient readmission and mortality rates.
“We see less complications, we see less readmission rates, we even see less mortality rates, which means fewer deaths,” she explained.
She says this is because nurses are able to focus more on patients and their needs.
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Gear says nurses also end up with better workplace satisfaction when they’re not heavily overworked.
“It also means that they have higher satisfaction rates in terms of being a nurse and working in the nursing profession,” she said.
“We know that 66.6% of nurses who are planning to leave cite that it’s inadequate staffing, which is the main reason why they want to leave.”
B.C. established minimum nurse-to-patient ratios back in 2023.
The provincial government is currently in the midst of executing Phase 1, targeting certain hospital units, including surgical ones.
While the BC Nurses Union welcomes this government initiative, Gear says it is not going fast enough.
“By having safe staffing levels, it will require many more nurses to be hired, and we currently have a deficit of nurses,” she explained.
The University of Pennsylvania conducted the study in 58 hospitals in the province, currently rolling out those minimum ratios.
Minimum ratios mean that nurses are only looking after a certain number of patients at a time.
Additionally, the provincial government is expanding to fill the shortage of health-care workers by attracting American medical professionals seeking to relocate to the province.
The B.C. College of Physicians and Surgeons approved a new bylaw facilitating the licensing of internationally-trained health-care workers in July this year.