Public Policy Annotated Bibliography

One potential public policy issue that may be of interest to me is the issue of mandatory staffing ratios for hospitals so as to ensure that adequate quality care is available to patients. Fox and Abrahamson (2009) note that nursing care arguably falls into the realm of protecting the common good, and therefore requires government oversight (p. 235). The sources in this bibliography relate to this issue and provide context for it.

ANA. (2019). Nurse staffing. Retrieved from

https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/advocacy/state/nurse-staffing/

ANA states that proper nurse-patient ratio should be based on variety of factors, including patient needs, admissions rate, experience of staff, unit layout, and resources available. The thesis is supported by empirical research on the issue. It is an article with great relevance to the topic, and it provides rich context showing the complexity of the issue.

Clarke, S. P., & Aiken, L. H. (2003). Registered nurse staffing and patient and nurse

outcomes in hospitals: a commentary.Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice,4(2), 104-111.

The authors show that hospital staffing is a public health issue by referencing existing literature and empirical data, but their thesis is that higher quality staffing is what policy should addressnot simply ratios. The work is relevant to the topic and is helpful in sifting through the complexities of the issue in a logical manner.

Dousay, T., Childers, B., Cole, M., Hill, T., & Rogers, C. (2016). Lower Nurse-to-Patient

Ratio: Higher Patient Satisfaction. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1105&context=student_scholarship_posters

The authors conducted peer-reviewed research to support their thesis, which is that low nurse-patient ratios are better for patient health, meaning the more patients assigned to a single nurse the lower quality of care can be expected. This source is relevant to the topic as...…a practical perspective from the standpoint of cost and applies it to the issue.

Rondeau, K. V., & Wagar, T. H. (2016). Human resource management practices and

nursing turnover.Journal of Nursing Education and Practice,6(10), 101.

The authors give evidence to show that nursing turnover costs an estimated $30,000 per nurse per hospital. This is relevant to the policy topic because it has bearing on the topic of cost, discussed by other researchers.

Twigg, D. E., Myers, H., Duffield, C., Giles, M., & Evans, G. (2015). Is there an

economic case for investing in nursing carewhat does the literature tell us?.Journal of advanced nursing,71(5), 975-990.

The authors argue that the 4:1 patient-nurse ratio is the best ratio that should be mandated by government policy. The authors support the thesis with existing research, and the thesis is relevant to the policy topic as it describes what ratio should be mandated.