Nursing care disparities found in hospitals serving Black communities

Hospitals primarily serving Black people have worse patient outcomes specifically related to nursing care. The research, led by 2025 AONL Foundation Nurse Researcher Award honoree Eileen Lake, PhD, RN, and published recently in Nursing Research, analyzed data from more than 3,000 hospitals from 2019 to 2022. The researchers measured four key nursing-sensitive indicators: pressure ulcers, perioperative pulmonary embolus/deep vein thrombosis, postoperative sepsis and failure to rescue. Hospitals serving a higher proportion of Black patients had significantly elevated rates of pressure ulcers, postoperative sepsis and perioperative pulmonary embolus/deep vein thrombosis. The researchers say their findings, along with previous research showing lower staffing levels in Black-serving hospitals, necessitate “immediate policy and management interventions.” Lake is the Edith Clemmer Steinbright professor in gerontology, professor of nursing in the department of biobehavioral health sciences and associate director of Penn Nursing’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research in Philadelphia. (Penn Nursing news release, 4/4/25)