Honolulu, Hawaii
H.D. 1
Speaker, House of Representatives
Thirty-Third State Legislature
State of Hawaii
Madame:
Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.R. No. 97 entitled:
"HOUSE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE HAWAII STATE CENTER FOR NURSING TO CONDUCT A STUDY COMPILING RECOMMENDED SAFE PATIENT STAFFING RATIOS,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this measure is to request the Hawaiʻi State Center for Nursing to conduct a study compiling recommended safe patient staffing ratios for various hospital units and health care settings.
Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure
from the Hawaiʻi American Nurses Association; Hawaii
Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO; Hawaii Nurses and
Healthcare Professionals; Hawaii Nurses Association, OPEIU Local 50; and eight
individuals. Your Committee received
testimony in opposition to this measure from one individual. Your Committee received comments on this
measure from the Hawaiʻi Board of Nursing and Hawaiʻi State Center for Nursing.
Your Committee finds
that safe patient staffing levels in hospitals are a critical component of
patient safety, quality of care, and workforce sustainability. Your Committee further finds that prior
studies and workforce data demonstrate improved patient outcomes and indicate
that the availability of registered nurses statewide is not a barrier to
achieving safe staffing.
Your
Committee recognizes the concerns raised in testimony by the Board of Nursing
and Hawaiʻi State
Center for Nursing that existing studies and qualitative differences between
professional staffing recommendations and regulatory requirements may make the
study proposed by this measure redundant and administratively difficult to
implement. However, your Committee
believes that requesting the Hawaiʻi State Center for Nursing to
publish a repository consisting of a comprehensive compilation of recommended patient
staffing ratios will promote transparency, inform policy decisions, and support
the retention and recruitment of Hawaii's nursing workforce.
Accordingly,
your Committee has amended this measure by:
(1) Requesting the Hawaiʻi State
Center for Nursing to compile a comprehensive list of recommended safe patient
staffing ratios for all nursing specialties and sub-specialties in all health
care settings and maintain a repository of that information, rather than
conducting a study on specific safe patient staffing ratios for various
hospital units and health care settings;
(2) Requesting the Hawaiʻi State
Center for Nursing to make the repository of recommended safe patient staffing
ratios publicly available, rather than submitting a study, no later than twenty
days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2027;
(3) Amending its title in accordance with its
amended purpose; and
(4) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.R. No. 97, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.R. No. 97, H.D. 1.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,
|
|
|
GREGG TAKAYAMA, Chair |
|
|
|
|