The economic value of professional nursing.
BACKGROUND
Improved understanding of the economic value of registered nurse services can help inform staffing decisions and policies.


OBJECTIVE
To quantify the economic value of professional nursing.


METHODS
We synthesize findings from the literature on the relationship between registered nurse staffing levels and nursing-sensitive patient outcomes in acute care hospitals. Using hospital discharge data to estimate incidence and cost of these patient outcomes together with productivity measures, we estimate the economic implications of changes in registered nurse staffing levels.


METHODS
Medical and surgical patients in nonfederal acute care hospitals. Data come from a literature review, and hospital discharge data from the 2005 Nationwide Inpatient Sample.


METHODS
Patient nosocomial complications, healthcare expenditures, and national productivity.


RESULTS
As nurse staffing levels increase, patient risk of nosocomial complications and hospital length of stay decrease, resulting in medical cost savings, improved national productivity, and lives saved.


CONCLUSIONS
Only a portion of the services that professional nurses provide can be quantified in pecuniary terms, but the partial estimates of economic value presented illustrate the economic value to society of improved quality of care achieved through higher staffing levels.
Dall
Timothy M
TM
The Lewin Group, Falls Church, Virginia 22042, USA. tim.dall@lewin.com
Chen
Yaozhu J
YJ
Seifert
Rita Furst
RF
Maddox
Peggy J
PJ
Hogan
Paul F
PF
D017046:Cost Savings; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology; D004471:Economics, Nursing; D004526:Efficiency; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000639:trends; D017721:Hospital Costs; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016015:Logistic Models; D016294:Models, Nursing; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000191:economics*; D010351:Patient Discharge / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care / Q000191:economics*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012945:Social Values; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology