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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Tim Solobay |
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Solobay pushes for adequate nursing staff ratios
HARRISBURG, Feb. 10 – State Rep. Tim Solobay, D-Washington, was a featured speaker at a Harrisburg news conference today calling attention to the need for adequate nurse-to-patient ratios at Pennsylvania hospitals and health-care facilities.
At the news conference, Solobay discussed his bill (H.B. 147) that would set adequate nursing staff-to-patient ratios in Pennsylvania health-care facilities.
"Fewer hospital-acquired infections, better care, shorter hospital stays -- that's what Pennsylvania residents deserve. The ability to better care for patients, less stress and fewer occupational injuries -- that's what Pennsylvania's nurses deserve. My bill would accomplish both of those goals by ensuring proper nurse-to-patient ratios," Solobay said.
According to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality study, infections, cardiac and respiratory failure, patient falls, and injuries increase with inadequate nurse staffing.
"It is well-established that inadequate hospital staffing results in dangerous medical errors and patient infections, which means longer hospital stays that increase the cost of medical care for all of us," Solobay said. "But the problem doesn't end there. Long working hours due to inadequate staffing affects nurses' health by increasing the risk of back, neck and shoulder injuries, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and depression. Some thanks for a person who has chosen to dedicate her or his life helping others."
Solobay also noted that increased staffing of registered nurses does not significantly reduce a hospital's profit, even though it raises the hospital's operating costs. He pointed to the AHRQ study that found a 1 percent increase in registered nurse full-time equivalents increased operating expenses by about 0.25 percent, but resulted in no statistically significant effect on profit margins. In contrast, higher levels of non-nurse staffing caused higher operating expenses as well as lower profits.
Solobay's bill has received bipartisan support in the House and is currently being considered by the House Health and Human Services Committee.
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