Nursing Workload in Relation to Nosocomial Infection in Public Hospital Intensive Care Unit, Malaysia

Nurses' shortages is one of the major factors expected to constrain hospitals' ability to deal with future outbreaks of emerging infections (Watson et al., 2016). [...]to overcome this problem, more nurses are required to work overtime to reduce the impact of the critical shortage of nurses and the downsizing of a nursing unit in both private and public health facilities (Sawatzky, Enns and Legare 2015). According to Cimiotti, Aiken, Sloane, and Wu (2012) increased overtime of nurses is associated with higher rates of catheter-associated urinary tract infections and central line intravenous (IV) bloodstream infections. According to Anesthesia and Intensive Care Service; Operational Policy (2008) in the ICU the nurse patient ratio shall be one nurse to one patient for caring of unconscious patient. Normally, when many of the staff taking MC/EL, replacement staff will be needed to care for patient in the ICU. [...]some of the staff needs to do overtime to overcome the shortage of staff.