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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR King
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
02/07/07
HB HM 17
SHORT TITLE Nurse Recruitment & Retention
SB
ANALYST Hanika Ortiz
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT (dollars in thousands)
FY07
FY08
FY09 3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
Total
$.1
see narrative
Non-
Recurring General
Fund
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
House Memorial 17 formally requests the Health Policy Commission to study and make policy
recommendations to increase nurse recruitment and retention in New Mexico hospitals.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
Additional costs to state agencies incur with the commencement of studies that impact staff and
resources which may need to be redirected.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The Memorial has the following comments:
•
Research and concern are increasing regarding the nursing work force and projected
short- and long-term shortages of nurses.
•
New Mexico hospitals and other health care providers are facing serious shortages of
professional nurses.
•
Physicians and nurses agree that hospital staffing levels of nurses are often inadequate to
ensure safe and effective care of patients, diminishing inpatient capacity, which leads to
emergency department overcrowding.
•
A 2001 national study identified a clear link between nurse staffing levels, job
dissatisfaction and nurse retention.
pg_0002
House Memorial 17 – Page
2
•
The need to attract and retain greater numbers of nurses within New Mexico will
continue for the foreseeable future.
•
A well-qualified, satisfied, stable and adequate supply of nurses is a shared concern for
employers, employees, consumers, families and private and public payers of hospital
services.
•
Increased nurse recruitment and retention could result in reduced errors, increased patient
safety and outcomes and improved job satisfaction for nurses.
•
There currently is no hospital in New Mexico that has obtained "magnet recognition
status" by the American nurses credentialing center.
The Memorial requests the Health Policy Commission report its findings and recommendations
to the Legislative Health and Human Services Committee at its October 2007 meeting.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
The Health Policy Commission along with others with knowledge and interest in nursing will be
required to conduct a study to include:
•
research and study of hospital environments that attract nurses, provide them with job
satisfaction, encourage them to give high-quality care and make them want to remain
within the nursing profession;
•
research what other states are doing or considering to make hospital nursing more
attractive;
•
analyze turnover rates, vacancy rates, patient outcomes data, nursing-sensitive quality
indicators and organizational factors that lead to the development of best practices in
hospital nursing.
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
The “Magnet Recognition Status" was established in 1993. It is the highest level of recognition
that the American Nurses Credentialing Center can accord to organized nursing services in
health care organizations.
This recognition indicates excellence in nursing services, development of a professional milieu,
and growth and development of the nursing staff. The “Magnet Recognition Status" is valid for a
four-year period, after which the recipient must reapply.
POSSIBLE QUESTIONS
What kind of efforts have been made to seek additional funding from hospitals for this effort
considering this study may greatly benefit hospital recruitment and retention rates.
AHO/csd