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         395.01922Nurse 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.