A new Europe-wide study says reducing nurse staffing numbers has a major impact on patient outcomes.
The figures show that there's a 7 per cent rise in deaths for every patient added to the patient-to-nurse ratio.
A team from Dublin City University contributed to the research, which is published today in The Lancet medical journal.
The study of almost half a million patients across 9 EU countries, including Ireland, found that every patient added to the patient-to-nurse ratio leads to a 7 per cent increase in deaths after surgery.
And for every 10 percent jump in nurses with bachelor's degrees, there's a 7 per cent drop in deaths.
Professor Anne Scott of DCU, who participated in the study says the results suggest that assuming you can cut nurse numbers to save money without affecting patient care is "misguided at best and fatal at worst".
Over 4 thousand 200 nurses have left the Health Service since 2009.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation says it's publishing its own survey in the coming weeks which shows that no Irish hospital wards have nurses looking after fewer than six patients with that number doubling on night duty.
