Nurse Staffing Paper

Optimizing the Nurse Staffing and Schduling Program: The Abstract When we obtain knowledge and learnings through lessons, it is important to share this information with others. As a professional, dissemination this knowledge is even more important. When professors and faculty publish their work, they increase their own prestige along with the institution where they are working (Jeffress & Lyle, 2012). More importantly, as Forsyth, Wright, Scherb, and Gaspar (2010, p. 15) state, “Knowledge synthesis, translation, and exchange are vital to strengthen health care, inform policy, and improve practice decisions based on current clinical evidence”. The importance of disseminating evidence-based practice (EBP) finding is for health care professionals
to utilize this information in their practice (Forsyth et al., 2010). The purpose of this paper is to review the Capstone Practicum Project and to highlight the abstract. The setting of the project, the problem addressed, and the purpose of the project will be discussed. The outcomes of the project and recommendations will be mentioned after reviewing the implemented changes, actions used to meet the objectives, along with the evaluation process.
Description of the Practicum Project Staffing and scheduling are complex issues. These two topics ultimately affect patient outcomes, patient and nurse satisfaction, turnover rates, nurse workloads, along with productivity and finances (Baker & Baker, 2014; Maenhout & Vanhoucke, 2013; Sadeghi, Barzi, Mikhail, & Shabot, 2013; Stimpfel, Sloane, & Aiken, 2012). Hospitals are under pressure to manage the nursing workforce efficiently as 40% of a hospital’s total budget represents labor expenses (Maenhout & Vanhoucke, 2013; Sadeghi, Barzi, Mikhail, & Shabot, 2013). A new staffing and scheduling program was implemented in the Fall of 2015 at a local hospital. As Information Technology (IT) help is at a premium, the new program continues to need optimization. In optimizing the staffing and scheduling program achievements can be made to increase efficiency and improve the accuracy of the schedules while closing the open shift gaps; with the intent to decrease the number of premium pay shifts.
The Abstract
Optimizing the Nurse Staffing and Schduling Program Increasingly hospitals are being asked to manage the nursing workforce budget as nearly half the budget is the expense of nursing salaries. Optimizing the nurse staffing and scheduling program is one way to assist in managing the budget. The staffing and scheduling program at Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh, Wisconsin was upgraded without having significant Information Technology (IT) support post implementation. As the core staffing needs change, based on the average daily census (ADC) that is recalculated quarterly, the core staffing template was not updated in the staffing and scheduling program; therefore, causing inaccurate variance reports. The purpose of this project was to optimize the nursing staffing and scheduling program, to produce an accuarate variance report, while closing the gap of open shifts in the schedule.
At the start of a six-week schedule there were significant open shifts and not enough staff to cover all the open shifts. The objectives for the project were to calculate the new (ADC), and to recalculate, in decimals, the core staffing needs for an 8-hour shift, for each shift in every inpatient nursing unit. The new calculations would then be entered into the staffing configurations of the staffing and scheduling program. The goal was to close the gap on open shifts at the start of the schedule, thus eliminating unnecessary overtime and premium pay shifts. Additionally with the new calculations, this would produce a more accurate variance
report. The actions and methods used, were to utilize the ADC data collected from the admitting department. The ADC was based on three target times of 0500, 1400, and 2200. Adjustments to the core staffing levels were based on the ADC which included a buffer to take into consideration the admissions. The new core staffing levels were adjusted in the nurse staffing and scheduling program and applied to the current six- week schedule. When comparing previous schedules and open shifts, the results had shown that recalculating the average daily census, adjusting the core staffing and applying the changes in the staffing and scheduling program, rendered a decrease in the open shifts in the current schedule. As well, with more accurate numbers in the staffing configuration of the staffing and scheduling program, this produced a more accurate variance report. Optimizing the nurse staffing and scheduling program is necessary to produce an accurate schedule, close the gap on open shifts, while reducing unnecessary overtime and premium pay shifts.
As a result, there is a savings in the nurse workforce budget. Recommendations going forth are to implement a staffing advisory council in the hospital, provide sufficient IT support to maintain optimization of the nurse staffing and scheduling program, and to consider a module for the staffing program that incorporates patient acuity into the daily staffing decisions.
Summary
Disseminating knowledge is an important aspect of project work and research. The sharing of information can be done in a variety of ways to include a verbal or poster board presentation on the nursing units or at an appropriate conference. Writing a journal article is another way of disseminating evidence-based practice. When we share the information, this contributes to nursing advancement as a profession as well as improving the safety and quality care of our
patients.