Nurse staffing and patient care outcomes: protocol for an umbrella review to identify evidence gaps for low and middle-income countries

Background: Adequate staffing is key to the delivery of nursing care and thus improved inpatient health service outcomes. Several systematic reviews have addressed relationship between nurse these Most primary studies within each review are likely be from high-income countries which different practice contexts low middle-income (LMICs), although this has not been formally examined. We propose conducting an umbrella characterise existing evidence linking outcomes explicitly aim identify gaps in research LMICs. Methods analysis: This protocol was developed using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews Meta-analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P). Literature searching will conducted across Ovid Medline, Embase EBSCO Cumulative Index Nursing Allied Health (CINAHL) databases. Two independent reviewers conduct data abstraction discordance handled by discussion both parties. The risk bias individual performed AMSTAR-2. Ethics dissemination: Ethical permission required as we make use already published data. publish findings our peer-reviewed journals. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42021286908