Purpose
To analyze the changes in nurse staffing grades and to estimate the revenue growth generated by applying government guidelines for improving nurses’ working conditions. Methods: Staffing grades, ranging from grade 1 (highest) to 7 (lowest), for 2018 and 2020 were analyzed for 326 general hospitals (GHs) and 1,419 non-general hospitals (NGHs). The annual revenue growth per nurse generated by changing inpatient nursing care fee schedules and newly introducing night shift nursing fees were estimated. Results: Grade 1 GHs increased from 6.9% in 2018 to 39.6% in 2020, whereas grades 6-7 decreased from 31.8% to 17.6%. NGHs with grades 6-7 decreased from 81.8% to 61.6%. GHs and NGHs with no reported staffing grades decreased from 10.6% to 0% and from 63.2% to 14.8%, respectively. The estimated annual revenue growth per nurse from inpatient nursing care fees resulting from 1-grade improvements in staffing was 1.44~7.26 million Korean won (KRW) and 1.25~9.75 million KRW for GHs and NGHs, respectively, while the results from night shift nursing fees were 2.37~5.54 million KRW and 2.20~5.14 million KRW for GHs and NGHs, respectively. Conclusion: The increased revenues should be utilized to augment nurses’ wages and staffing levels as the guidelines recommend.

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