Winter Storm Uri Reduced Availability of Daily Direct-Care Nurse Staff in Texas Nursing Homes

Abstract

We examined the effect of Winter Storm Uri on daily direct-care nurse staffing levels in 1,173 Texas nursing homes (NHs) from February 13^th to 19^th, 2021. We used data from Payroll-Based Journaling and the Care Compare website. Linear mixed effects models were used to estimate the linear and non-linear change in staffing. During Winter Storm Uri, Texas NHs experienced a linear decrease in daily staffing levels with subsequent non-linear increase for registered nurses (RNs; p < .001) and certified nursing assistants (CNAs; p < .001), and staffing increased linearly for licensed practical nurses (LPNs; p < .001). Compared to 1 week before the storm, Texas NHs reported lower staffing levels across all three types of staff, but most dramatically among LPNs and CNAs. In supplemental analyses, urban and lower quality NHs fared slightly poorer than rural and higher-quality NHs. Winter storms pose a particular challenge to NHs and their ability to maintain direct-care nurse staffing levels.

Keywords

disaster medicine staffing shortages disaster preparedness

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