About 2003 I remember our senior director said they wanted to look at using a nurse as a patient care coordinator for 2-3 operating rooms. The OR itself would have non nurses doing the care. Thankfully, it went nowhere. With regard to nurses quiet quiting or not wanting to return to direct patient care, this will never improve as long as nursing management is unrestrained in its retaliatory actions against staff nursing. Amnesty International, TANA and ICN have called for regulatory reform. But, nursing elite control the narrative. They will not self regulate and will not give up this power. So, the culture allows for immunity calling what is clearly misconduct, an employment issue. And we all know HR works for administration, not the employees. Thus, the only recourse is legal action. Nurses do not have $25,000 to retain an attorney. Much less battle a hospitals deep pockets. This leads to helplessness against the system. There are no watchdogs for the nursing front line except grassroots small organizations. The media has failed nursing and so has so called professional organizations. Unions have their decades old playbook and will not champion regulatory reform, either.
Thanks, Theresa for writing back. I wish I could write like you. I mean it. As an oncology nurse I have followed your back when you wrote for the NY Times and thought it was so cool that they were letting you have a voice.
My story is not unique and I don't mean for anyone to feel sorry for me. I am just mourning the hope that I believe gets fizzled out so quickly within the current (10-15 years) nursing work force. I don't know what kind of seismic change we need before our country (or the world) would say enough is enough.
Happy anniversary, and congratulations to Sophia! Her move will be a big change for you all, but what an exciting opportunity!
As for your article, I always wonder why it is that people in power forget basic economics. However can we solve the nursing staffing shortage?! Just spitballing here, but maybe hospitals could try making nursing jobs more attractive, so nurses would choose them? It’s worth a try!
During the COVID pandemic, the country could witness, day by day, the incredible sacrifice and value of our nation's nurses. At the same time, hospitals and hospital systems were given tens of millions of dollars in financial support by the US government (meaning you and me). How much of that was passed down to the nurses working on the front lines? Only as much as was necessary to keep them working. Theresa has it exactly right - our "shortage" will continue until nurses are given the respect and gratitude they deserve and are paid commensurate with their worth.
We are living in sobering times and I am saddened by what the future will hold for me as a boomer who will need health care. I pray that my time will be far off.
Working through a pandemic was traumatic and forced me to accept that my chosen profession that has provided me skills and experience for good was not valued. I am not just my skills! I am still working and you would have thought that what we went through with all our collective stories would be enough to impart change.
I appreciate you Theresa for bringing these issues to light so eloquently.
Very sobering commentary on a real threat to the remaining glue in a patchwork system of care, Theresa. Delivering compassionate and humane care to our fellow human beings is hard work; we should show our respect and gratitude to those nurses willing to embrace that role while we endeavor to address the underlying reasons for an exodus from the bedside.
About 2003 I remember our senior director said they wanted to look at using a nurse as a patient care coordinator for 2-3 operating rooms. The OR itself would have non nurses doing the care. Thankfully, it went nowhere. With regard to nurses quiet quiting or not wanting to return to direct patient care, this will never improve as long as nursing management is unrestrained in its retaliatory actions against staff nursing. Amnesty International, TANA and ICN have called for regulatory reform. But, nursing elite control the narrative. They will not self regulate and will not give up this power. So, the culture allows for immunity calling what is clearly misconduct, an employment issue. And we all know HR works for administration, not the employees. Thus, the only recourse is legal action. Nurses do not have $25,000 to retain an attorney. Much less battle a hospitals deep pockets. This leads to helplessness against the system. There are no watchdogs for the nursing front line except grassroots small organizations. The media has failed nursing and so has so called professional organizations. Unions have their decades old playbook and will not champion regulatory reform, either.
Thanks, Theresa for writing back. I wish I could write like you. I mean it. As an oncology nurse I have followed your back when you wrote for the NY Times and thought it was so cool that they were letting you have a voice.
My story is not unique and I don't mean for anyone to feel sorry for me. I am just mourning the hope that I believe gets fizzled out so quickly within the current (10-15 years) nursing work force. I don't know what kind of seismic change we need before our country (or the world) would say enough is enough.
Thanks again for your advocacy!
Happy anniversary, and congratulations to Sophia! Her move will be a big change for you all, but what an exciting opportunity!
As for your article, I always wonder why it is that people in power forget basic economics. However can we solve the nursing staffing shortage?! Just spitballing here, but maybe hospitals could try making nursing jobs more attractive, so nurses would choose them? It’s worth a try!
How the heck do you replace nurses with non - nurses ??????
During the COVID pandemic, the country could witness, day by day, the incredible sacrifice and value of our nation's nurses. At the same time, hospitals and hospital systems were given tens of millions of dollars in financial support by the US government (meaning you and me). How much of that was passed down to the nurses working on the front lines? Only as much as was necessary to keep them working. Theresa has it exactly right - our "shortage" will continue until nurses are given the respect and gratitude they deserve and are paid commensurate with their worth.
We are living in sobering times and I am saddened by what the future will hold for me as a boomer who will need health care. I pray that my time will be far off.
Working through a pandemic was traumatic and forced me to accept that my chosen profession that has provided me skills and experience for good was not valued. I am not just my skills! I am still working and you would have thought that what we went through with all our collective stories would be enough to impart change.
I appreciate you Theresa for bringing these issues to light so eloquently.
Very sobering commentary on a real threat to the remaining glue in a patchwork system of care, Theresa. Delivering compassionate and humane care to our fellow human beings is hard work; we should show our respect and gratitude to those nurses willing to embrace that role while we endeavor to address the underlying reasons for an exodus from the bedside.