In the face of nurse shortages, increasingly diverse skill mix and multidisciplinary care, the potential that other staff can substitute for registered nurses is often considered.
Possible substitutions are diverse and include having nursing teams led by non-nursing professions. More commonly, staff with less training are considered as potential substitutes as an answer to staff shortages, or because using less expensive staff is seen as economically efficient. In this briefing we will consider evidence to ask: is it safe and cost-effective to substitute registered nurses with less qualified support staff?

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