Nurses’ Shift Length and Overtime Working in 12 European Countries

The Association With Perceived Quality of Care and Patient Safety

Datos Bibliográficos

ID9101640
AutoresPeter Griffiths (0000-0003-2439-2857, University of Pennsylvania, autor de correspondencia), Chiara Dall’Ora (0000-0002-6858-3535, University of Southampton, autor de correspondencia), Michael Simon (0000-0003-2349-7219, University of Basel), Jane Ball (0000-0002-8655-2994, King's College London), Rikard Lindqvist (0000-0002-1913-8523, Karolinska Institutet), Anne‐marie Rafferty (King's College London), Anne-Marie Rafferty, Lisette Schoonhoven (0000-0002-7129-3766, Radboud University Medical Center), Carol Tishelman (0000-0003-4161-0342, Karolinska Institutet), Linda H Aiken (0000-0001-8004-3630, University of Pennsylvania)
Año2014
Volumen52
Número11
Páginas975-981
Fecha de publicación2014-11-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaMedical Care (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0025-7079 • E-ISSN: 1537-1948
EditorialOvid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1097/mlr.0000000000000233
PMID25226543
PMCIDPMC4196798
OpenAlexW2092758688
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas14
Referencias citadas35

BACKGROUND: Despite concerns as to whether nurses can perform reliably and effectively when working longer shifts, a pattern of two 12- to 13-hour shifts per day is becoming common in many hospitals to reduce shift to shift handovers, staffing overlap, and hence costs. OBJECTIVES: To describe shift patterns of European nurses and investigate whether shift length and working beyond contracted hours (overtime) is associated with nurse-reported care quality, safety, and care left undone. METHODS: Cross-sectional survey of 31,627 registered nurses in general medical/surgical units within 488 hospitals across 12 European countries. RESULTS: A total of 50% of nurses worked shifts of ≤ 8 hours, but 15% worked ≥ 12 hours. Typical shift length varied between countries and within some countries. Nurses working for ≥ 12 hours were more likely to report poor or failing patient safety [odds ratio (OR)=1.41; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.13-1.76], poor/fair quality of care (OR=1.30; 95% CI, 1.10-1.53), and more care activities left undone (RR=1.13; 95% CI, 1.09-1.16). Working overtime was also associated with reports of poor or failing patient safety (OR=1.67; 95% CI, 1.51-1.86), poor/fair quality of care (OR=1.32; 95% CI, 1.23-1.42), and more care left undone (RR=1.29; 95% CI, 1.27-1.31). CONCLUSIONS: European registered nurses working shifts of ≥ 12 hours and those working overtime report lower quality and safety and more care left undone. Policies to adopt a 12-hour nursing shift pattern should proceed with caution. Use of overtime working to mitigate staffing shortages or increase flexibility may also incur additional risk to quality

Confidence interval · Family medicine · Health care · Labour economics · Logistic regression · Odds · Odds ratio · Overtime · Patient safety · Shift work · Staffing · Emergency Medicine · Hospital Admissions and Outcomes · Internal Medicine · Medicine · Nursing · Nursing education and management · Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue