Nurse understaffing during the Covid-19 pandemic may have impacted patient safety

A new study has found nursing shortages may have negatively impacted patient safety, including unsafe practice management workarounds and cognitive failures.

Research has found cutting corners when understaffed may have been the only way to get the work done quicker due to the added strain and heavier workload and in another study, it was discovered nurse staffing demand increased to 245 percent between September and December 2020. 

It was also reported that nurses who had little or no experience of working in the ICU environment were assigned to work there which may have led to higher stress levels and cognitive failures such as memory and attention lapses. 

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Source: Recycle Intelligence, 13 July 2021