Section 1 creates the Staffing Plan Disclosure Act.
Subdivision 1 creates definitions applicable to the hospital staffing report created in this bill, including “core staffing plan,” “nonmanagerial care staff,” “inpatient care unit,” “staffing hours per patient day,” and “patient acuity tool.”
Subdivision 2 requires hospitals licensed by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to develop a core staffing plan for each patient unit, specifying the full-time equivalent for each patient care unit for each 24-hour period. Also requires the Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) to maintain a link on its quality report Web site to information on hospitals’ core staffing plans on MDH’s Web site. Hospitals are required to consult with its medical, managerial, nonmanagerial care, and other personnel on the core staffing plan and the expected average number of patients on which the plan is based.
Subdivision 3 requires MDH-licensed hospitals to report their core staffing plans to MHA by January 1, 2014. MHA must post plans on its quality Web site by April 1, 2014, and substantial changes to the core staffing plans must be updated quarterly, beginning July 1, 2014.
Section 2 requires MDH to study the correlation between nurse staffing levels and patient outcomes, with a report due to the Legislature by January 15, 2015. The report must include recommendations regarding collecting standardized data on the link between nurse staffing levels and quality of acute care, and allows MDH to require hospitals to report core staffing plans on a per-shift basis if it is determined more specific data is needed.
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