The nurse manager determines that four registered nurses are ...

[roselinechinyere27m]

The nurse manager determines that four registered nurses are needed to adequately provide care for 16 clients on the unit during the night shift.
 
  Which of the following statements indicate that the nurse manager is utilizing descriptive methodology to determine staffing needs?
  1. I use client data like the average unit census and the average length of stay. I plug these data into a formula and that's how I determine staffing.
  2. I include information that we learned about how long it takes to perform certain nursing tasks to determine staffing needs.
  3. After I take a look at the client acuity levels on the unit, I usually rely on my gut instinct'.
  4. We use information that comes from the nurse supervisors to determine staffing needs based on how we care for clients on our unit.

Question 2

Determine the nursing staff productivity index. The unit standard is 8 nursing hours per patient day (NHPPD). There are 22 patients. 9 RNs are staffed for 24 hours. Patient days = 10 days. Round your answer to a whole percentage point.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[abro1885]

Answer to Question 1

Answer: 3

Rationale: Descriptive methodology refers to developing a staffing pattern based on subjective data. The nurse manager uses his or her experience and intuition to guide staffing activities. The industrial engineering approach is used when the nurse manager develops a staffing pattern based on specific objective data. This typically includes the following: work distribution, task analysis, work sampling, and time-and-motion studies. The management engineering methodology refers to developing a staffing pattern based on a staffing index model. Client acuity information, unit-specific information, and operating budget are used to find the most appropriate staffing pattern.

Answer to Question 2

Answer: 81

Rationale:
22 patients x 10 days each = 220 patient days
220 patient days x 8 NHPPD = 1760 work hours = output
9 RNs for 24 hours for 10 days each = 2160 hours worked = input

Output / input x 100 = nursing staff productivity index ()
1760 / 2160 x 100 = 81.48 = 81