Does Nurse Fatigue Related To Work Schedule And Mandatory Overtime Impact Patient Safety

Author : Wendy Kinney
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (135 download)

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Download or read book Significance of Nurse Mandatory Overtime on Nurse and Patient Safety written by Wendy Kinney and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Overtime, including both mandatory and voluntary, is associated with nurse's fatigue, job injury or illness, increased patient mistakes, and patient mortality. There are limitations to the current literature that show correlations between long hours worked and poor nursing outcomes, which likely understate the issue. A nurse working past their regular shift either mandatorily or voluntarily, is at increased risk for injury to themselves and their patients. These risks grow the longer each nurse works without adequate rest. The solution is for a standard of Nurse Mandatory Overtime Regulation be adopted nationally. A national standard is important in order to improve nursing outcomes, as current standards vary and are used differently in each state. This new National Safety Policy on Nursing Mandatory Overtime Regulation will define safe hours that nurses should work, ensure nursing facilities follow mandatory overtime regulations, and recommend it be adopted by all states. Findings are based from current studies of multiple sources; including cross-sectional studies using qualitative and quantitative data from 2004 to present, in multiple cultures and regions that primarily studied hospital registered nurses. Results of this research show that further study is warranted which better track multiple jobs and roles of nurses, their total work hours, shift lengths, risks to health, and patient mistakes or injury. Implementing the solution to nurse mandatory overtime regulations will include finding those measures that are both popular and needed in order to garner further support from stakeholders and legislators. These measures will undergo an evaluation plan that will set out the proposed details of what will be required, who will need teaching, how, and when. Dissemination to all stakeholders will highlight the significance and impact on mandatory regulations for nurses, with outlined proposals for policy changes, budget costs, how to continue to monitor the affects of overtime changes, and monitor if changes have been made. The United States "Congress in 2007 did not pass a bill that would have prohibited mandatory overtime for nurses on a national basis. As of July 2010, the bill has not come before Congress again" (Nichols, 2010, para.6). This paper shows there is a need for nurse mandatory overtime regulation at the federal or national level. Nurses have a responsibility to work safely and have a voice to say "no" to extra work hours or shifts when their health or that of their patients may be affected.