tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37193330.post4080597976591719976..comments2023-10-30T09:14:22.102-04:00Comments on JammieWearingFool: Boston Nurses Scraping By on $114K a Year Threaten StrikeJammieWearingFoolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02187909738923654281noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37193330.post-61444686304922549912011-04-12T22:48:41.267-04:002011-04-12T22:48:41.267-04:00If they are doing it for the money, then I agree w...If they are doing it for the money, then I agree wholeheartedly with you. <br /><br />However, there are several <a href="http://journals.lww.com/nursingresearchonline/Abstract/1998/01000/Nurse_Staffing_and_Patient_Outcomes.8.aspx" rel="nofollow">studies</a> available that show better outcomes for patients with higher nurse-patient ratios.<br /><br />In one study it was shown that for every patient over 4 that a nurse is responsible for the chances of severe injury or death increase exponentially and at 7 patients the chances are 50% higher that a patient will die from something that could be prevented if the nurse had time to catch it. It has also been shown that in <a href="http://www.springerlink.com/content/y23r8q2mu9g3v0j0/" rel="nofollow">ICU</a> chances of severe complications increase when nurses care for more than two patients. <br /><br />The problem lies partially in the fact that hospitals charge for the bed, not the nurse. I don't know about you, but no one I know goes to the hospital for the beds, and you see more of the doctor in an office visit. People forget that the reason they are admitted to the hospital is for the nursing care. Hospital Administration forgets that, too, and nurses end up being told to take more patients then they can keep up with or care for properly. When that happens patients are at risk, and the nurses themselves are at risk of losing their ability to make a living and take care of their own families. It's a college degree, dedicated to the one field and doesn't translate well to others. <br /><br />Most hospitals say they staff by acuity, or how sick the patients are, but while that might be the goal (just like cutting the budget is Obama's goal) it rarely works out that way. Most often nurses work short-handed, without enough aides to pick up the slack, and with patients that are too sick for one person to be responsible for that many. A 12 hour shift with no lunch (I've seen one hospital where there was a break nurse, the rest of the time it's grab a bite when you get a chance and chances are few and far between) and one bathroom break is not conducive to good care for the patients or keeping the good nurses working. There is a reason that more than 60% of the people with nursing licenses don't work as nurses. And it's not the paycheck.Spikessibnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37193330.post-5241134855662936242011-04-12T11:50:27.305-04:002011-04-12T11:50:27.305-04:00I think I will have my wife put in an applicationI think I will have my wife put in an applicationPatricknoreply@blogger.com