DIFFERENTIATED NURSING PRACTICE - ASSESSING THE STATE-OF-THE-SCIENCE

The authors present their findings following an exhaustive literature review of research on differentiated nursing practice (DNP) that used a number of tools to measure various aspects of DNP that are applicabl e across the health care delivery continuum. Issues related to DNP inc lude: optimal nursing care, matching patient needs with nurse competen cies, effective use of nursing resources, equitable compensation, care er satisfaction, loyalty to employers, and enhanced prestige of the nu rsing profession. One 1992 Massachusetts study of a three-role oncolog y unit project (including patient care manager, clinical nurse, and pa tient care technician), showed positive change in five criteria includ ing: standards of nursing care, actual care hours, average labor costs , job satisfaction and patient satisfaction. A 1990 Arizona study that included unit assistants concluded that DNP supported a decline in th e use of supplemental staff and staff overtime which led to cost savin gs, and increases in the actual hours of care and nurse satisfaction.