Mass. nurses tout new staffing law amid national concern about Ebola readiness
A statewide nurses group on Wednesday touted implementation of a new staffing law as critical to patient safety, while a national nurses group warned hospitals are not prepared to deal with the Ebola virus.
The state law taking effect this week limits the number of patients that intensive care unit (ICU) nurses may be assigned to and the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) says the law will guarantee closer monitoring of patients.
"This is an important patient safety measure for the most critically ill patients providing them with one-on-one attention from their registered nurse when they need it most,” Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, said in a statement. “It is important for the public to be aware of this new measure as their health and safety in the hospital is directly related to the number of patients assigned to their nurse.”
The new law mandating staffing ratios in ICUs is the result of a hard-fought battle in the Legislature earlier this year. The MNA was pushing for staffing ratios in all hospital departments, and the measure was headed for the November ballot before lawmakers agreed to a bill requiring ratios in ICUs only. David Schildmeier, spokesman for the MNA, has said the law is a first step toward hospital-wide staffing ratios.
Meanwhile, National Nurses United released preliminary results from a survey of more than 400 nurses in two dozen states showing more than 60 percent said their hospitals are not prepared for Ebola. About 80 percent of respondents said their hospital has not communicated any policy regarding potential admission of patients infected by Ebola and 85 percent said their hospital has not provided education on Ebola.
Authorities on Monday confirmed the first U.S. case, in Dallas, of a patient infected with Ebola. The nurses group called for dramatically stepped up efforts in Africa, where the outbreak began, and in the U.S.
According to the White House, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Tom Frieden updated President Obama Tuesday afternoon on the Ebola case in Dallas, which involves a man who recently returned from Liberia, and discussed the "stringent isolation protocols under which the patient is being treated as well as ongoing efforts to trace the patient’s contacts to mitigate the risk of additional cases."
Frieden said the CDC had been prepared for an Ebola case in the U.S., the White House said, and that "we have the infrastructure in place to respond safely and effectively."
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