“Anyone admitted to a hospital must feel certain that their nurse will be there when needed to protect their health and safety.  But fewer and fewer patients are confident that will be the case and, all too often, their worst fears are confirmed: too few nurses to care for far too many patients,” said Schakowsky, who is a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.  

“Patients have died because there wasn’t a nurse at their bedside – a nurse trained to prevent, detect and respond to problems,” added Schakowsky, who warned that patient safety is compromised due to nurses being overwhelmed with workload.

She pointed to a Journal of the American Medical Association study that showed that patients are 31% more likely to die in hospitals where nurses are required to care for eight patients rather than four patients.  Additionally, national statistics have also found that every year, 98,000 patients die in hospitals across the country because of preventable injuries, and understaffing has been identified as a major factor in many of those deaths.  

A survey released today by the AFL-CIO demonstrates clearly that health care consumers join nurses in wanting mandatory staffing ratios and standards.  The survey found that 75% of Americans believe that there are not enough nurses and, by the same percentage, Americans believe that shortage of nurses has a direct impact on quality of care.  According to the AFL-CIO findings, nurse shortage and quality of patient care is an issue that cuts across party lines.

“Working with you,” Schakowsky told the crowd, “I will shortly introduce legislation to establish enforceable, safe staffing ratios in hospitals.  And our bill will include provisions to pay for additional nurses and nurse training programs.  We must not cut corners when it comes to patient care.  We will provide the resources needed to meet staffing ratio requirements.”

“We are facing a national crisis that requires a national solution,” Schakowsky concluded.