No matter what Nurse, or Certified Nursing Assistant, or any healthcare worker, I get the same story. They tell me “they are not giving us the staff we need”. For administration its just a cost they decline to pay regardless of current research into unsafe staffing, not to mention we are the second state in the nation to have a safe staffing bill. We have performed free bedside advocacy nursing for anyone that needs it. So far 1 patient passed away, one survived, and the other has has multiple organ failure and has 4 kids. When we ask why, the administration tells us its based off of the number of patients in the beds, rather then how sick they are and how much care they so desperately need. That is so wrong and we all know if it was their family layed up in that bed, they would be screaming bloody murder that their loved one does not get the attention they deserved. I always tell my patients, “That’s not your bed, and that’s not your pillow, so we understand that if you were healthy you wouldn’t be here”, however the short time we do have with them, our focus is education and making sure they are safe. To this day I still don’t always clock out on time, but I make sure that my patients and their families have all the care they need and beyond. Do I care if I get written up for overtime even though we all have a valid excuse? Heck no, because my patient is first and that paperwork can wait while I focus in on whats important, “My patients are important and not to kill them is our absolute goal”. This is our ethical standpoint and it sounds like a good one, so the next time you are in a hospital here is Nevada and you need help, we are here for you.
