Nurses’ Work Environment Perceptions When Employed in States With and Without Mandatory Staffing Ratios and/or Mandatory Staffing Plans

Abstract

Multiple stakeholders have sought regulatory and nonregulatory strategies to address nursing workforce and patient safety concerns. This study examines differences in nurses’ work environment perceptions. Approximately 4,000 nurses employed in 10 states provided their perceptions of key characteristics of their work environment using the Individual Workload Perception Scale. Univariate statistics were used to characterize mean values of the nurses’ work environment perceptions by state of employment and whether these perceptions changed if employed in states with versus without mandatory staffing ratios and/or mandatory staffing plans. This study provides preliminary evidence that mandatory staffing plan legislation may be linked with the most positive nurse work environment perceptions when compared with implementation of mandatory staffing ratios or no workforce regulation. Based on this preliminary observation, further analysis comparing the relative benefits and costs of workforce regulation may be warranted.