title: Avoiding mandatory hospital nurse staffing ratios: an economic commentary.
abstract: The imposition of mandatory hospital nurse staffing ratios is among the more visible public policy initiatives affecting the nursing profession. Although the practice is intended to address problems in hospital nurse staffing and quality of patient care, this commentary argues that staffing ratios will lead to negative consequences for nurses involving the equity, efficiency, and costs of producing nursing care in hospitals. Rather than spend time and effort attempting to regulate nurse staffing, this commentary offers alternatives strategies that are directed at fixing the problems that motivate the advocates of staffing ratios.
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University Medical Center School of Nursing, 2525 West End Avenue, Suite 600, Nashville, TN 37203-1738, USA. peter.buerhaus@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Peter I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Buerhaus