Nurse workload and patient safety in hospital settings: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: Patient safety is a critical component of high-quality nursing care and healthcare delivery systems.
The heavy workload of hospital nurses is one of the key difficulties linked with the health care system, and there
are substantial implications associated with too much pressure on nursing staff. The objective of the paper is to
analyze the workflows of hospital staff nurses and to identify the root cause of the causal relationship between
heavy nurse workload and patient safety. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study design using a mixed
technique approach was conducted in Aakash Healthcare Super Specialty Hospital Pvt, Ltd., New Delhi, India.
This study included 120 inpatient department (IPD) patients, 10 clinical and 40 nursing staff in May 2022. To
conduct data collection surveys, a semi-structured questionnaire was developed. Results: The rising workload of
staff nurses causes a communication chasm between nurses and physicians, significantly impacting the quality of
nurse-physician collaboration. Factors related to staff nurses' excessive workload influence the prevalence
of medication mistakes and nosocomial infections. According to this study, heavy workload is a major source of
occupational stress for nurses and has a negative influence on patient safety. Conclusion: The key factors of nursing
workload include staffing numbers, patient conditions, and the architecture of nurses; work systems. The workload
on nurses should be properly measured, and work system elements that contribute to the workload should be
identified. Increasing nursing personnel and maintaining an appropriate nurse-patient ratio are critical steps toward
improving patient safety. Quality nursing care and efficient management of workload among nurses can provide a
better life to patients and human beings.