Whereas, nurse staffing is critical to the delivery of quality patient care;

Whereas, staff nurses are an essential resource in identifying patient characteristics and the number of patients for whom care is being provided;

Whereas, identifying and maintaining the appropriate number and mix of nursing staff is a challenge experienced by staff nurses, nurse managers and nursing leaders in all settings;

Whereas, staffing should be based on achieving quality of patient care outcomes, meeting organizational goals and an organizational environment that supports the quality of nurses work life;

Therefore be it resolved, OMNE: Nursing Leaders of Maine in support of the nine principles identified by the expert panel for nurse staffing and adopted by the American Nurses Association Board of Directors recommends the following principles as a philosophical framework for nurse staffing for Maine providers of healthcare.

• Appropriate staffing levels for a patient care unit reflect analysis of individual and aggregate  patient needs.
• Staffing is most appropriate and meaningful when organizations identify a measure or unit of intensity that takes into consideration the aggregate population of patients and the associated roles and responsibilities of nursing staff.
• Unit functions necessary to support delivery of quality patient care must also be considered in determining staff levels.

• The specific needs of various patients populations should determine the appropriated clinical competencies required of the nurse practicing in that area.
• Registered nurses must have nursing management support and representation at both the operational level and the executive level.
• Clinical support from experienced expert RNs should be readily available to those novice RNs with less proficiency.

• Organizational culture should reflect an organizational climate that values registered nurses and other employees as strategic assets and exhibit a true commitment to recruiting for budgeted positions.
• Organizational culture and policies should reflect a commitment to retention of registered nurses and all employees.
• All institutional should have documented competencies for nursing staff, including agency or supplemental and traveling RNs, for those activities that they have been authorized to perform.
• Organizational polices should recognize the myriad of both patients and nursing staff.