Updated January 28, 2008
Safe RN Staffing (HB 3123/SB 6734) – Research
confirms that increased RN staffing leads to better patient outcomes. Registered
nurses providing direct patient care know best the needs of their patients and
must have a voice in staffing decisions. This legislation requires each hospital
to establish a nurse staffing committee composed at least half direct care
nurses. This committee will develop, oversee and evaluate a staffing plan
for nursing services that is based on the patient care needs and the appropriate
skill mix of registered nurses and other nursing personnel. If this plan
is not adopted by the hospital, the CEO must provide a written explanation of
the reasons why to the committee.
Mandatory Overtime (HB 2824 & HB 1306) -- Long hours take a
toll on mental alertness and requiring nurses to work overtime and long hours
without breaks when they are already exhausted can result in serious medical
mistakes, medication errors, transcription errors and errors in judgment.
Strictly limiting the use of mandatory overtime and ensuring real meal/rest
breaks are important steps toward improving patient safety and nurse retention.
Nursing Education Funding -- Nursing programs in WA State are
turning away hundreds of qualified students every year due to a lack of funding
for enrollment slots, lack of funding to recruit and retain qualified nursing
faculty, and lack of physical capacity. The Health Professions Scholarship
and Loan program is essential in attracting more men and ethnic diversity to the
profession. WSNA supports designated enrollment slots for nursing
students, increased nursing faculty funding, and additional appropriation
towards nursing scholarships.
Repeal of 72hrs Dispensing for ARNPs (HB 2497 & SB 6267) --
Patients’ access to medications is affected when nurse practitioners cannot
dispense more than 72 hours of Schedule II-IV medications that are essential to
improving health outcomes. This is particularly an issue for uninsured or
underinsured patients who have no resources to purchase medications and people
in rural areas who have limited access. WSNA supports legislation to repeal the
72 hour limit on dispensing of schedule II-IV controlled medications by advanced
registered nurse practitioners.
School Nurse Ratios (HB 2886 & SB 6662) & Eliminating Requirements
for Scoliosis Screening in Schools (SB 6135 &HB 2516) – In order to
ensure that each student has appropriate preventive, health promotion, early
identification and intervention services, WSNA supports legislation to increase
the ratio of school nurses to students and the elimination of scoliosis
screening in schools.
Public Health Nursing & Public Health Funding -- Public health
nurses and public health is the center of a quality health care system and is
the most cost effective system for disease prevention and health improvement.
Public health and public health nurses are also our first line of defense in
responding to bioterrorism and in disaster preparedness. WSNA supports
additional funding for the public health system including funding for public
health nurses and nursing services.
Health Care Access -- As frontline health care providers,
registered nurses are aware of the consequences when people do not have access
to quality and affordable health care. WSNA support efforts to ensure that
everyone in Washington State has access to preventative services and quality
care in a timely fashion by the most appropriate health care provider at an
affordable cost.
