Critical Appraisal of Research
Critical Appraisal of Research
The best practice that emerges from the research I reviewed is the implementation of ideal nurse-to-patient ratios in hospitals. Poor nurse-to-patient ratios often result in nurse burnout. In turn, burnout leads to poor job satisfaction among nurses, which causes many of these professionals to quit their jobs and opt for other alternatives. In the end, a nurse shortage arises simply because nurses get overworked. Hence, ensuring that nurses are not overworked is vital in preventing burnout and the subsequent nursing shortage. This can only be achieved by facilitating ideal nurse-to-patient ratios.
According to Shuldham et al. (2019), “there is a direct relationship between staffing levels and patient outcomes for specific nurse-sensitive indicators, with the lower patient to nurse ratios (i.e., fewer patients per nurse) associated with better outcomes.” Generally, burnout is a huge problem for many nurses who either quit their job or consider quitting. Consequently, healthcare organizations need to implement evidence-based strategies to alleviate burnout. Shah et al. (2021) suggests the implementation of adequate nurse staffing and limiting the number of hours that nurses work per shift.
Muabbar and Alsharqi (2021) reveal that a lot of evidence proves the relationship between patient care quality and nurse staffing. Furthermore, the limited nursing workforce in many healthcare institutions is tied to the mediocre management of ill patients. In turn, the few nurses are made to cater to large patient numbers, which worsens the situation because most of these individuals eventually quit. This further exacerbates the nursing shortage problem. Hence, it is crucial to ensure that regardless of the demand for healthcare services, hospitals should try to implement ideal nurse-to-patient ratios as a long-term solution to the nurse-shortage crisis.
References
Muabbar, H., & Alsharqi, O. (2021). The impact of short-term solutions of nursing shortage on nursing outcome, nurse perceived quality of care, and patient safety. American Journal of Nursing Research, 9(2), 35-44
Shah, M. K., Gandrakota, N., Cimiotti, J. P., Ghose, N., Moore, M., & Ali, M. K. (2021). Prevalence of and factors associated with nurse burnout in the US. JAMA Network Open, 4(2), e2036469-e2036469.
Shuldham, C., Parkin, C., Firouzi, A., Roughton, M., & Lau-Walker, M. (2019). The relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcomes: A case study. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 46(7), 986-992.
