Nurses are the largest group of health care professionals providing direct patient care in hospitals, and the quality of care for hospital patients is strongly linked to the performance of nursing staff, according to an Institute of Medicine report. This paper describes the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's (RWJF's) work in nursing, which focuses on improving the hospital work environment to attract and retain high-quality nursing staff, with the ultimate goal of improving patient care and outcomes in hospitals. Other organizations' efforts to address the nurse shortage are also explored. [Health Affairs 25, no. 1 (2006): 268-274] T h e r o b e rt wo o d j o h n s o n Foundation (RWJF) is dedicated to improving the health and health care of all Americans. Central to this mission is transforming the way care is delivered at the bedside to reduce the shortage in nurse staffing and improve the quality of nursing care. 1 Nurses are the linchpins in providing highquality patient care in hospitals. To attract high-quality staff, enable them to do their best work, and keep them as long-term employees, improvements must be made in the organization of work and use of information technology (IT); physical design and allocation of space; and hospital leadership and culture. Working with various partners, the RWJF expects to build support for a new kind of hospital that reflects the needs and realities of the twenty-first century: a hospital where patient safety is assured, quality of care is paramount, efficiencies are maximized, and staff are satisfied with and actively supported in their jobs.Although this initiative begins with the nursing profession, the results from these efforts are expected to affect all health care workers in hospitals and the millions of patients whom they serve. A 'Perfect Storm' For Nurses And PatientsThroughout the past few decades, U.S. hospitals have faced cyclical shortages of nurses; in 2000 an estimated 126,000 hospital nursing positions were unfilled. 2 The percentage of nurses working in hospitals dropped from 59 percent in 2000 to a little more than 56 percent in 2004. 3 The current nurse shortage is driven by a broad set of factors related to recruitment and retention-among them, fewer workers, an aging workforce, and unsatisfying work environments-that have contributed to a different kind of shortage that is more com-2 6 8 J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 0 6 G r a n t W a t c h
With approximately 1.2 million New Yorkers poised to gain health insurance coverage as a result of federal health reform, demand for primary care services is likely to increase greatly. The Affordable Care Act includes $11 billion in funding to enhance primary care access at community health centers. Recognizing a need and an opportunity, in August 2010 the New York State Health Foundation made a grant of nearly $400,000 to the Community Health Care Association of New York State to work with twelve health centers to develop successful proposals for obtaining and using these federal funds. Ultimately, eleven of the twelve sites are expected to receive $25.6 million in federal grants over a five-year period-a sixty-four-fold return on the foundation's investment. This article describes the strategy for investing in community health centers; identifies key project activities, challenges, and lessons; and highlights its next steps for strengthening primary care.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.