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Mid-career pros choosing nursing training

July 10, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

With the nationwide nursing shortage barreling down on providers, it's nice to learn that a growing number of mid-career professionals from outside the medical profession are pursuing nursing degrees. Over the past few years, the number of enrollees in nursing programs who already have a bachelor's degree in another field has shot up, from 6,860 in 2003 to 12,347 in 2006. Nursing instructors say a mix of factors have contributed to this trend, including rising nurse salaries, widespread …

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Study: Nurse turnover not highest priority

July 9, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

While nurse turnover can cost hospitals as much as $5.4 million per year, hospital executives typically are working harder on other issues, including quality improvement, reimbursement problems and uncompensated care, a new study shows. The Pricewaterhouse Cooper study, which included data from 237 hospital respondents, found nurse and physician staffing were sixth and seventh, respectively, on a list of key issues cited. On average, executives reported temporary nurses were staffing an …

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Case dropped against New Orleans nurses

July 4, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

The ordeal is over for two New Orleans nurses who were arrested last summer on second-degree murder charges after Hurricane Katrina. The nurses, Lori Budo and Cheri Landry, had been accused of killing four patients at Tenet's Memorial Medical Center with a "cocktail" of lethal drugs. But the district attorney has now dropped the case, largely because the two testified in a grand …

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HCA hospitals strike FL union deal

June 11, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

HCA and the SEIU Florida Healthcare Union have agreed on a contract covering 4,000 workers at six of the state's hospitals. The contract raises wages, setting the lowest pay rate at $9.15 an hour, as well as creating patient-care committees giving staff members an avenue for proposing process improvements. It also offers some job security features, a real plus given that some fear HCA will eventually sell some hospitals to pay off debt. Nurses are particularly happy about the patient-care …

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Calif. hospital chain faces quality complaints

June 4, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

Sharp HealthCare, a seven-hospital chain based in San Diego, is facing charges that it has violated state regulations hundreds of times. The system's nurses have filed a 140-page quality-of-care complaint with the California Department of Health Services which lists 900 alleged transgressions "seriously compromising" patient care, according to United Nurses Association of California/Union of Health Care Professionals. The nurses say the hospitals face unsanitary conditions, short …

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Calif. nursing shortage looms

May 30, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

It's hardly surprising, but still sobering. According to new state projections, California could see a shortfall of 12,000 full-time registered nurses over the next seven years if things don't change. This is, in part, because there are far fewer slots in nursing schools than there are interested applicants. Last year, only 11,000 out of 28,410 applicants were accepted into the state's nursing programs. What's more, those that enter the programs often drop out. In fact, a full 25 percent …

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Mentors dramatically improve nurse retention

May 29, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

Sometimes, it seems, having someone take an interest makes all of the difference. Despite an array of forces prompting high nurse turnover, a new pilot program has found that nurses are seven times more likely to stay on the job if they're properly mentored. The study drew on data from the California Nurses Association (CNA), which has been running a mentoring program at seven California hospitals. Mentors involved in the program are asked to complete a three-day class, then meet with …

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Bill would limit forced overtime for nurses

May 8, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA), whose career has been marked by his willingness to regulate healthcare, is hoping to make yet another mark. This time, Stark has filed a new bill which would set limits on the use of forced overtime by nurses. The bill, the Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act, is endorsed by the American Nurses Association, as well as labor groups like the SEIU and AFL-CIO. Under the terms of the bill, which is co-sponsored by Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH), facilities could only …

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New Orleans goes on international nurse hunt

April 25, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

Hospitals in New Orleans are searching far and wide to fill major gaps in their nursing lineups, still struggling with shortages arising from mass departures after Hurricane Katrina. For example, Ochsner Medical Center-West Bank and West Jefferson Medical Center have been forced to fill the 100 vacancies at each hospital with contract workers from out of state. The two also share …

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MA hospital cuts errors 35%, gets $100,000

March 29, 2007 — 8:01pm ET

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts has awarded Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) $100,000 for its work in reducing errors on its obstetrics unit. Thanks to process and administrative changes, the department saw a substantial 35 percent drop in adverse events among patients between 1999 and 2005, and even more notably, a 50 percent decline among high-risk patients during the same period. BIDMC began changing the department's process of care after a newborn …

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