Hospital Nursing Environments Study

• The study compared outcomes and costs of general surgery at 35 hospitals with superior nursing environments, called focal hospitals, and at 293 control hospitals.
• The focal hospitals were defined by two attributes: they had been labeled by the American Nurses 214 Observational Studies Credentialing Center as magnet hospitals, and they had a nurse-to-bed ratio of one or more.
• The control hospitals had neither of these two attributes.
• The study found that the outcomes and costs of general surgery were better at the focal hospitals than at the control hospitals.
• A study was conducted in which pairs of Medicare patients undergoing general surgery were matched based on a number of factors, including age, sex, race, and other comorbidities.
• The study found that the outcomes and costs for patients who had surgery performed at a focal hospital were better than for those who had surgery performed at a control hospital.
• The study also found that the outcomes and costs for patients were comparably good regardless of whether or not their surgery was performed at one of the focal hospitals or one of the control hospitals.
• The study's authors say that the findings suggest that the focal hospitals in the study are providing better care than the control hospitals.

Test your knowledge about a study comparing outcomes and costs of general surgery at hospitals with superior nursing environments versus control hospitals. Explore the impact of magnet hospitals and nurse-to-bed ratio on patient outcomes and costs.