House to Debate and Vote on Nurse Staffing Bill Today at 1 p.m.
The leadership of the State House of Representatives has rescheduled a debate and vote on a landmark compromise bill to guarantee safe RN staffing in all Massachusetts hospitals for 1 p.m. today, May 24. The measure calls upon the Department of Public Health to set safe limits on nurses’ patient assignments, prohibits mandatory overtime and includes initiatives to increase nursing faculty and nurse recruitment.
Frontline nurses, and more than 104 leading health care and consumer groups, are supporting the bill as a means of improving patient safety in Massachusetts hospitals. A survey of recent patients in the state’s hospitals conducted last March found that one in four patients reported their safety was compromised during their hospital stay due to understaffing. The scientific research clearly shows that when nurses have fewer patients, patients get better care, medical errors are reduced, and millions of dollars are saved.
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