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Long-delayed passage of Patient Safety Act from committee applauded by PA nurses
Ed Gruver//June 7, 2023
Local rehab hospitals earn high rankings from Newsweek PHOTO/GETTY IMAGES
Long-delayed passage of Patient Safety Act from committee applauded by PA nurses
Ed Gruver//June 7, 2023//
Listen to this articleFollowing decades of grassroots advocacy to move House Bill 106 out of committee, Pennsylvania nurses are applauding Tuesday’s passage of the Patient Safety Act from the House Health Committee.
Nurses are now demanding the bill be scheduled immediately for a full floor vote in the House.
The Patient Safety Act would create a safe minimum standard for hospitals in Pennsylvania.
Denelle Korin, a registered nurse of 18 years and member of SEIU Healthcare PA, SEIU Nurse Alliance, and Nurses of PA, said nurses made history on Tuesday.
“We passed a life-saving bill out of the Health Committee after decades of being stalled by out-of-touch House leadership,” Korin said in a statement. “Now we’re demanding that our bill finally have its day on the floor to be voted on by our elected representatives.”
Nurse staffing in Pennsylvania hospitals varies widely, from three to 11 patients per nurse, according to research done by the University of Pennsylvania. Patient staffing is connected to patient outcomes, including failure to rescue patients with complications, hospital-acquired infections, patient satisfaction, length of stay, readmissions, patient safety, and mortality, research shows.
While the number of nurses is growing nationally and research reveals the U.S. is adding a million new nurses each decade, the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) reports a 15% turnover rate of direct care RNs in hospitals.
The Patient Safety Act is deemed by supporters to be critical to aiding overworked nurses. The bill is supported by Gov. Josh Shapiro.
“We will not stop until we pass the Patient Safety Act in both the House and Senate and finally get this bill placed on Governor Shapiro’s desk and signed into law,” said Korin.
