New efforts try to balance nurse staffing ratios with access to care
Fitxplore admin
New efforts try to balance nurse staffing ratios with access to care
Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images Nurse groups are focused on fixing what they say are untenable nurse-to-patient ratios. As legislation mandating staff ratios looms, AI and virtual care may offer a way forward. It's National Nurses Week 2024 , and it's time to celebrate the more than 5 million RNs nationwide who are so essential to care delivery. But overshadowing the celebration are many challenges impacting the nursing workforce. Chief among them: critical staffing challenges . Some federal and state legislators are seeking to mandate patient-caregiver ratios to help improve care and reduce nurse burnout . But many nurses and hospital groups oppose laws requiring minimum nurse staffing ratios, pointing to the risk of patients being diverted when there are not enough nurses available when they arrive at the hospital. Beyond legally mandated remedies, healthcare leaders are leveraging information and technology – generative artificial intelligence, virtual nursing teams and algorithms…