Nurse staffing in Portuguese public hospitals.

AIM: This study aims to contribute to the knowledge of nurse staffing in hospital settings in central and northern Portugal. BACKGROUND: Nurse staffing is a critical factor for the quality and safety of health care and is still an understudied topic in Portugal. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 850 nurses from 12 public hospitals in the central and northern regions of Portugal. RESULTS: Nurse staffing in these hospital units is insufficient, especially in internal medicine units and central hospitals. Nurses' perceptions are in line with the objective data. CONCLUSIONS: The shortage of nurses is a horizontal issue that is especially serious in internal medicine units and central hospitals and a potential threat to the quality of care. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The results stress the need for an urgent leadership intervention in nurse staffing levels in the hospitals analysed in this study. Contextual knowledge about nurse staffing is essential for decision-making and supporting health and human resource management policies.

Impact of safe nurse staffing on the quality of care in Portuguese public hospitals: A cross-sectional study.

AIM: To assess the impact of safe nurse staffing on the quality of care, based on the structure-process-outcome approach, in Portuguese hospitals. BACKGROUND: Safe nurse staffing is essential for the quality of care in hospital settings, together with work environment, organisational commitment and nursing practices. However, there is little evidence of its analysis in the Portuguese context. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted using a sample of 850 nurses from 12 public hospital units in the central and northern regions of Portugal. RESULTS: The proposed structural equation model for quality assessment has a good fit (χ2 /df = 2.37; CFI = 0.88, PCFI = 0.83; PGFI = 0.77, RMSEA = 0.04), showing the impact of safe nurse staffing, work environment, and affective and normative organisational commitment on the quality of care (mortality rate and adverse events). The mediating effect of nursing practices was also found. CONCLUSION: Safe nurse staffing, which is compromised in 90% of the units, is a predictor of the quality of care through the mediating effect of nursing practices. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The results not only highlight the need for urgent intervention but also support political decision-making with a view to improving the access to quality care.

Nurse managers' perceptions of nurse staffing and nursing care quality: A cross-sectional study.

AIM: To verify the association between the nurse staffing and the quality of nursing care, mediated by the care process, based on a hypothetical model, in Portuguese public hospitals. BACKGROUND: Nurse staffing influences health outcomes. Understaffing is associated with an increased risk for adverse events (AEs) and a reduction in the quality of care. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a sample of 55 Portuguese nurse managers. A path model was developed to analyse potential causal mediation effects on care quality. RESULTS: Nurse staffing (number and competencies) and teamwork indirectly influence the quality of care. This process is mediated by the response capacity, the use of new techniques and work methods and patient's surveillance capacity. The AEs occurrence also has a mediating role, being negatively associated with the quality of care. CONCLUSIONS: Optimizing nursing care safety and quality requires an adequate nurse staffing level, both in terms of number and competencies, as well as teamwork. Process components seem to play a mediating role in these relations. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: These results deserve the attention of nursing management for investment in the nursing staff and in the care process, to improve quality and create value in health care.

Practice environment scale of the nursing work index: Portuguese version and psychometric properties.

AIM: To assess the psychometric properties regarding the Portuguese version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index. BACKGROUND: The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index is the most widely used measure for assessing the practice environment. A model with a higher number of factors appears to be more adequate to Portuguese settings. METHOD: A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index using a sample of 850 Portuguese nurses. Three models were tested: the original model, a seven-factor model and a higher-order model. An analysis of invariance was performed in two subsets to confirm the stability of the solution. RESULTS: The seven-factor model fit better to the data than the original model. After refinement, this solution showed suitability and a stable factor structure. Reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity were confirmed. A second-order factor solution also showed suitability. CONCLUSION: The seven-factor structure of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index showed a better goodness-of-fit to Portuguese settings than the original structure. The second-order factor solution allows an overall assessment of practice environments. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The Portuguese version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index is a valuable tool for assessing Portuguese nursing practice environments. The seven-factor solution of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index showed high specificity.