TELL THE JOINT COMMISSION: REQUIRE SAFE STAFFING RATIOS FOR ORGANIZATIONS SEEKING ACCREDITATION AND CERTIFICATION

Safe healthcare is a human right.

For decades, the United States healthcare system has understaffed healthcare workers to cut costs. Nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, CNAs, occupational therapists, pharmacists, social workers - healthcare workers of all disciplines have been intentionally understaffed to maximize profits for hospital systems.

These staffing decisions come at a cost to patients’ safety. Healthcare workers need adequate time and resources to safely care for their patients. 

For every additional patient a nurse cares for, a patient’s risk of dying increases by as much as 7% (Aiken 2014).

Unsafe staffing is contributing to workplace injuries, burnout, and the Great Resignation of healthcare workers.

Patients and healthcare workers alike NEED safe staffing ratios. 

Safe staffing saves lives. 

The Joint Commission has worked for 70 years to drive “quality improvement and patient safety in healthcare.” The Joint Commission has advocated for and led to the implementation of numerous patient safety initiatives and quality metrics. However, The Joint Commission’s quality standards do not guarantee adequate patient to worker staffing ratios for any discipline.

With the surplus of evidence that safe staffing decreases sentinel events and patient mortality, we demand The Joint Commission:

Immediately require safe staffing ratios for ALL LEVELS AND SETTINGS OF CARE, with noncompliance to these ratios being held as a barrier to accreditation; AND

Immediately develop a taskforce that includes CURRENTLY PRACTICING CLINICAL PROVIDERS OF ALL DISCIPLINES to determine appropriate staffing ratios for each discipline and care setting based on existing research and clinical experience; AND

Develop and make publicly available an annual report, based on payroll data, of individual hospitals’ compliance with mandated ratios; AND

Develop and disseminate objective and peer-reviewed research on the impact of staffing ratios on workers and patients for ALL HEALTHCARE DISCIPLINES; AND

Transparently partner with any and all relevant organizations (state, federal, and professional) to achieve these goals and ensure the prioritization of PATIENT SAFETY over stakeholder profit. 

If The Joint Commission intends to fulfill their stated mission to advocate for patient safety, they must, immediately, demand safe, evidence-based staffing ratios for hospital workers and care providers of all disciplines. 

With the rising prevalence of the DNV’s NIAHO® standards, the failures of the Joint Commission’s accreditation process have become increasingly obvious. We demand accountability from the organizations that protect us, and we challenge these regulatory bodies to fulfill their stated purposes. 

Signed,
 
Nurse Blake, BSN, RN (@nurse.blake)
IMPACT in Healthcare (@impactinhealthcare)
www.impactinhealthcare.org