Abstract: Embodiments of the innovation relate to a method for assigning staffing levels in a healthcare staffing device. The method includes displaying, by the healthcare staffing device, a set of patient acuity types associated with a department of a healthcare organization; receiving, by the healthcare staffing device, patient census information and patient acuity information for each patient acuity type of the set of patient acuity types associated with the department of the healthcare organization; applying, by the healthcare staffing device, staffing guidelines to the patient census information and patient acuity information for each patient acuity type; and outputting, by the healthcare staffing device, a staffing level indicator for the department of the healthcare organization based upon application of staffing guidelines to the patient census information and patient acuity information for each patient acuity type.