title: Cross-training hospital nurses to reduce staffing costs.
abstract: There are advantages and disadvantages of cross-training hospital nurses. The financial benefit of reducing reliance on supplemental agency staff can be quantified. Cross-training policies can be compared. Simulation shows that the strategic cross-training principle of chaining performs particularly well. Practical formulas (that can be solved in a spreadsheet) are provided for quickly evaluating the economic performance of staffing and cross-training scenarios.
authors.affiliation: General Motors Corporation, Warren, Michigan, USA. robert.inman@gm.com
authors.forename: Robert R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Inman
authors.forename: Dennis E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Blumenfeld
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ko
mesh_terms: D000041:Absenteeism; D003363:Cost Control / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009013:Morale; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education*; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling / Q000191:economics*; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D014481:United States