40 Percent of Hospitals Fail to Meet National Nursing Workforce Standard
A new report from The Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit hospital watchdog, found that while nurses are key to providing quality hospital care, many hospitals fall short when it comes to supporting their nursing staffs. According to the report, 40 percent of hospitals reporting to the Leapfrog Hospital Survey did not comply with all of the 21 National Quality Forum (NQF)-endorsed safe practices related to nursing workforce.
The practices encompass such items as ensuring adequate nursing staff levels, providing funding for staff training and including nurses in hospital leadership. The survey also indicates which hospitals have received Magnet Status, a designation developed by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to recognize hospitals and other healthcare organizations that provide nursing excellence.
Key findings from the Leapfrog report include:
• The percentage of hospitals that achieved full compliance on the nursing workforce safe practice grew from 52 percent in 2013 to 60 percent in 2014. Despite this increase, two in five reporting hospitals did not fully meet Leapfrog standards.
• Leapfrog-reporting hospitals achieving Magnet Status increased from 15.5 percent in 2013 to 16 percent in 2014. Only seven percent of all hospitals nationwide have achieved Magnet Status.
• Of the Colorado hospitals that participated in the survey, 20 were fully compliant, 13 were partially compliant and 41 declined to respond.
To view the complete report on nursing best practices, visit:
http://www.leapfroggroup.org/HospitalSurveyReport. Additionally, data is searchable by region or by hospital via the LeapFrog Hospital Survey results.