Abstract:
The staffing budget is one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult, challenges nurse leaders face in their work. Labor consumes the majority of the organization's financial resources; therefore, everyone must act responsibly to ensure financial health. Census variability is no friend to the staffing plan. It's always important to staff to volume and try to achieve having enough staff with the correct skill mix to provide quality patient care in the most cost-effective manner.
As a nurse leader, you're expected to predict or make an educated guess as to what your staffing need will be for each day. Flexing your staffing levels to actual volume is a key to your department being productive. You may be asking yourself, where do patient safety and quality care come into consideration instead of just dollars? There are several evidence-based leadership studies that prove the higher the RN-to-patient ratio, the lower the adverse outcomes for patients. The successful nurse leader learns to find the right balance between quality, safety, staff satisfaction, and fiscal responsibility in providing the most effective staffing plan.
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