Approaches for identifying nursing staff requirements
| Study | Country | Design | Number of EDs | Comparisons | Outcomes | Results | Patients seen | Internal validity | External validity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crouch and Williams22 | UK | Prospective Observational | 6 | N/A | Dependency score | The higher the amount of time spent by nurses in direct care of patients the higher the patient's level of dependency (R=0,72, p<0.001). Age was significantly associated with dependency—for a 10 year age difference the score increase by 0.51 (95% CI 0.43 to 0.59). There was a significant correlation between triage rating and Jones Dependency Tool scores (R=0.58, p<0.001). Highly significant correlation between the Jones Dependency Tool scores and the nurses’ subjective ratings of patient dependency (R=0.786, p<0.001). | 840 | + | – |
| Korn and Mansfield23 | USA | Prospective Observational | 1 | N/A | N/A | Factors influencing staff requirements were acuity-based norms (time for new admissions and nurse to staff ratios (from 1:2 for ICU to 1:10 for regular admissions) for those waiting for a bed. Results were model tabulations stating whether ED was ‘OK’ or ‘Overloaded’ based on patient numbers/acuity and model assumptions. | N/A | − | – |
ED, emergency department