Abstract
Nurse staffing on inpatient psychiatric units was examined using data from a national sample of 409 hospitals. Hospitals' nonpsychiatric unit staffing predicted psychiatric unit staffing, accounting for 15.2% and 6.8% of variability in licensed and unlicensed staffing, respectively. Licensed and unlicensed staffing on psychiatric units were inversely related. Of the non-California hospitals in the study, 70% had annual levels of psychiatric unit staffing exceeding California's mandated 1:6 licensed staffing ratio.