Registered Nurse Forecasting Study

The RN4CAST Project was one of the largest nursing workforce studies ever conducted in the European Union.

The objective of the study was to determine how hospital nurse staffing, skill mix, educational composition, and quality of the nurse work environment impact hospital mortality, failure to rescue, quality of care, and patient satisfaction. The findings from the study serve to allow researchers to refine existing nurse workforce forecasting models by addressing both the volume and quality of nursing staff and patient care.

The RN4CAST project involved two major phases. The first phase (2009-2010) focused on instrument development, instrument validation, and data collection. The second study phase focused on data analysis and policy synthesis (2010-2011).

The ambition of the RN4CAST project was to produce actionable recommendations to improve nursing care and patient outcomes at the individual hospital level and to inform national policies that could improve care outcomes through strategic investment in nursing.

RN4CAST concluded in 2011.