Bill Text: FL S0114 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Nursing Services/Hospital Nurse Staffing Plans [SPSC]

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2010-04-30 - Died in Committee on Health Regulation [S0114 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-S0114-Introduced.html

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Florida Senate - 2010                                     SB 114 
 
By Senator Aronberg 
27-00069A-10                                           2010114__ 
1                        A bill to be entitled 
2         An act relating to nursing services; creating s. 
3         395.01922, F.S.; providing definitions; requiring that 
4         hospitals establish nurse staffing collaborative 
5         councils; providing for membership and 
6         responsibilities; requiring the council to produce 
7         annual hospital nurse staffing plans; requiring the 
8         chief nurse executive to communicate with the council 
9         to ensure appropriate implementation of the nurse 
10         staffing plan; requiring that the council conduct a 
11         semiannual review of the nurse staffing plan; 
12         requiring the nurse staffing plan to be reviewed with 
13         the nurse personnel and made available to the public 
14         upon request; providing an effective date. 
15 
16         WHEREAS, research demonstrates that registered nurses play 
17  a critical role in patient safety and quality of care, and 
18  hospitals are employing multiple strategies to recruit and 
19  retain nurses, and 
20         WHEREAS, the implementation of evidence-based nurse 
21  staffing plans to foster safe, high-quality patient care and 
22  increase job satisfaction for nurses is crucial, and 
23         WHEREAS, hospitals and nursing organizations share a mutual 
24  interest in patient-safety initiatives that create a healthy 
25  environment for nurses and provide for the safe care of 
26  patients, and 
27         WHEREAS, in order to ensure safe, quality patient care, 
28  support the retention of registered nurses, and promote 
29  evidence-based nurse staffing, the Legislature intends to 
30  establish a mechanism whereby nurses and hospital leadership 
31  participate in a joint process regarding nurse-staffing-plan 
32  decisions, NOW, THEREFORE 
33 
34  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
35 
36         Section 1. Section 395.01922, Florida Statutes, is created 
37  to read: 
38         395.01922 Nurse staffing collaborative councils.— 
39         (1) As used in this section, the term: 
40         (a) “Acuity” means the level of patient need for nursing 
41  care, as determined by the nursing assessment. 
42         (b) “Nurse staffing collaborative council” means the 
43  collaborative council established by a hospital under this 
44  section. 
45         (c) “Nursing personnel” means registered nurses, licensed 
46  practical nurses, certified nursing assistants, and unlicensed 
47  assistive personnel providing direct patient care. 
48         (d) “Nursing-sensitive quality indicators” means indicators 
49  that capture care or the outcomes most affected by nursing care. 
50         (e) “Patient care unit” means any unit or area of the 
51  hospital where registered nurses provide care to patients. 
52         (f) “Skill mix” means the number and relative percentages 
53  of registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, certified 
54  nursing assistants, and unlicensed assistive personnel among the 
55  total number of nursing personnel. 
56         (2) By September 1, 2010, each hospital licensed under this 
57  chapter shall establish a nurse staffing collaborative council 
58  by creating a new collaborative council or assigning the 
59  functions of a nurse staffing collaborative council to an 
60  existing council or committee. Membership of the nurse staffing 
61  collaborative council shall be determined by the chief nursing 
62  executive and shall include representation of nurses currently 
63  participating in direct patient care. 
64         (3) Primary responsibilities of the nurse staffing 
65  collaborative council shall include the development and 
66  oversight of an annual patient care unit and shift-based nurse 
67  staffing plan, based on the needs of patients, which shall be 
68  used as the primary factor in developing the nurse staffing 
69  budget. Factors to be considered in the development of the plan 
70  include, but are not limited to: 
71         (a) Census information, including total numbers of patients 
72  in the unit on each shift, and activity in the unit, such as 
73  patient discharges, admissions, and transfers. 
74         (b) The acuity level of all patients and the nature of the 
75  care to be delivered on each shift. 
76         (c) The skill mix. 
77         (d) The level of education, training, and experience of the 
78  nursing personnel providing care. 
79         (e) The need for specialized equipment. 
80         (f) The physical layout and design of the patient care 
81  unit, including, but not limited to, placement of patient rooms, 
82  treatment areas, nursing stations, medication preparation areas, 
83  and equipment. 
84         (g) Staffing guidelines adopted or published by national 
85  professional nursing associations, specialty nursing 
86  organizations, and other health care professional organizations. 
87         (h) Hospital finances and resources. 
88         (i) Level of technology and support. 
89         (4) The nurse staffing collaborative council shall produce 
90  an annual nurse staffing plan for the hospital. The chief nurse 
91  executive shall communicate and collaborate with the council to 
92  ensure a safe and appropriate implementation of a staffing plan. 
93         (5) The nurse staffing collaborative council shall conduct 
94  a semiannual review of the staffing plan with regard to patient 
95  needs and evidence-based staffing information, including the 
96  nursing-sensitive quality indicators collected by the hospital. 
97         (6) The staffing plan shall be reviewed annually with 
98  nursing personnel in each patient care area, and the plan shall 
99  be shared with the community upon request. 
100         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.