Running head EFFECTS OF NURSE STAFFING 1
High Nurse to Patient Ratio is Associated with Poorer Patient Outcomes
As healthcare institutions strive to achieve greater profits to meet the monetary demands
of stakeholders, they have sought to reduce operating costs. According to Aiken, Cimiotti,
Sloane, Smith, Flinn and Neff, (2011), nursing comprises the largest subgroup in hospital
budgets, accounting for 25% or more of operating expenses and up to 40%of direct care cost (p.
1047). Based on the forgoing therefore, a common cost containment measure is to reduce the
nursing hours or staff population.
Several researches have indicated that lower nursing staff levels impact the quality of
patient care and outcomes. The AHRQ, for example, found that there were higher rates of
pneumonia, falls pressure ulcer, longer hospital stays, shock and nosocomial infections with
lower nurse staffing. Further studies by the ANA, also suggests that there were reductions in
