The impact of nurse staffing methodologies on nurse and patient outcomes: A systematic review

Abstract

Aim Aim of this study is to systematically review and synthesize available evidence to identify the association between nurse staffing methodologies and nurse and patient outcomes. Design Systematic review and narrative synthesis. Data sources A search of MEDLINE (EBSCO), CINAHL (EBSCO) and Web of Science was conducted for studies published in English between January 2000 and January 2020. Review methods The reporting of this review and narrative synthesis was guided by the preferred reporting items for systematic and meta‐analysis guidelines (PRISMA) statement and data synthesis guided by the Synthesis Without Meta‐analysis (SWiM) guideline. The quality of each article was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Results Twenty‐two studies met the inclusion criteria. Twenty‐one used the mandated minimum nurse‐to‐patient ratio methodology and one study assessed the number of nurse hours per patient day staffing methodology. Both methodologies were mandated. All studies that reported on nurse outcomes demonstrated an improvement associated with the implementation of mandated minimum nurse‐to‐patient ratio, but findings related to patient outcomes were inconclusive. Conclusions Evidence on the impact of specific nurse staffing methodologies and patient and nurse outcomes remains highly limited. Future studies that examine the impact of specific staffing methodologies on outcomes are required to inform this fundamental area of management and practice.

The Impact of Working Environment on Nurses' Caring Behavior in Sabah, Malaysia

“…In their umbrella review on the relationship between nurse staffing levels and nursing-sensitive patient outcomes, Blume et al ( 65 ) concluded that it was difficult to draw a reliable statistical conclusion due to the large number of aspects that could influence the impact of hospital staffing on patient outcomes. Twigg et al ( 66 ) in their systematic review further asserted that the previous literatures regarding staffing methodologies cannot highlight to any methodology as being prevalent in improving patient and nurse outcomes. Rather, their review found that the improvements in nurse staffing levels has the related advantages of improving nurse and patient outcomes.…”

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Contributions of Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses to Nursing Education, Research, and Practice

“…Otros estudios usan la metodología de RS y MA para identificar los factores que determinan el surgimiento de infecciones asociadas a la atención de salud en adultos hospitalizados (19) y para demostrar el beneficio de intervenciones del estilo de vida en mujeres que presentaron diabetes gestacional (20). También se ha demostrado, mediante el uso de RS y MA, que una adecuada dotación de personal de Enfermería en las instituciones de salud puede llevar a mejores resultados en los pacientes y enfermeras (21,22).…”

Nurse staffing and inpatient mortality in the English National Health Service: a retrospective longitudinal study

“…Such studies struggle to convincingly demonstrate causality. Many studies rely on retrospective, nurse-reported staffing levels 2 3 5 11 13 16–18 20 22 30–32 36. Our study uses administrative panel data to address these methodological concerns and makes several additional contributions.…”