The notion that there is a relationship between nurse and patient satisfaction makes sense. As a nurse, you work longer shifts than just about any other professional on the planet. If you work a long shift in poor conditions with entirely too many patients, you’re more likely to make a mistake. And really, who could blame you? Burnout and exhaustion are both very real problems for nurses.
Tired Nurses Result in Lower Patient Satisfaction
The first things to go when anyone becomes overly tired include patience and compassion. A study sponsored by the National Institute of Nursing Research concluded that patient dissatisfaction is highest when nurses work more than 13 hours in a single shift. Unfortunately, understaffing is a common issue in medical institutions. So, it’s common for your employer to ask you to work double shifts. Statistics even show that a nurse working over 10 hours is nearly three times more likely to dissatisfy their patients than a nurse who works an eight-hour shift.
Understaffing: A Life or Death Problem
An unhappy patient or two because an exhausted nurse working a double shift wasn’t gushing with rainbows and sunshine is hardly the end of the world. Unfortunately, understaffing and overworked nursing staffs is a much deeper problem with more serious results. According to research from the University of Pennsylvania, it is a life or death problem.
