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California Nurse-to-Patient Ratios

Effective: January 1, 2008

Hospital Unit California Department of Health Services (for Non-Kaiser Hospitals) UNAC-Kaiser Ratios
Critical Care/ICU 1:2 1:2
Neonatal ICU 1:2 1:2
Intermediate Care/Continuing Care Nursery 1:6 1:4
Perinatal Services
Labor & Delivery 1:2 1:2
Postpartum 1:8 (4 couplets) 1:6 (3 couplets)
Well-Baby Nursery 1:8 1:6
Postanesthesia (PACU) 1:2 1:2
Emergency Department
Trauma 1:1 1:1
Critical Care 1:2 1:2
Visits 1:4 1:3
Operating Room 1:1 1:1
Pediatrics 1:4 1:3
Stepdown 1:3 1:3
Telemetry 1:4 1:3
Medical/Surgical 1:5 1:4

Different facilities will have different rules for adding additional nurses. Please call your affiliate officers if you have any questions. Find your Officers here.

For more information on a non-Kaiser facility, you may find more information on the California Board of Registered Nursing website’s Nurse-to-Patient Staffing Ratio Regulations page.