Innovation on a Hospital Perinatal Unit: Cell Phone Use by Nurses

摘要

The nursing shortage in the United States has a direct impact on all aspects of health care throughout the nation. Consequences of this shortage affect cost, job satisfaction, turnover rate, recruitment effort, and ultimately the quality of care provided to the patient. Many initiatives are underway to confront this shortage. One area of focus is the reduction of nurse times spent performing functions that could be accomplished by hospital support staff. This study evaluates the impact and effect of cell phone communication technology on reducing nurse task frequency and time spent on activities that could more appropriately be accomplished by hospital support staff. The study evaluates the cost benefit of cell phone deployment and its impact on nurse task frequency and satisfaction.