[annmariern]

Originally Posted by Areenn

Unfortunatly our inability to make a powerfull statement impedes our ability to change the conditions we work in. The fact is any action we take will negatively effect our patients. Nurses can not walk out on ill people dependant on them. Managers ectra have depended on this to avoid having to improve ratios, and pay and ensure nurses are able to take breaks they desperatly need. So we continue to deal with unsafe ratio's and work 12 hr shifts without breaks.

I have known a few ICU nurses who have worked strikes in other states that are unionized. They tell stories of striking nurses who harrass nurses who work strikes. It is too bad that the striking nurses do not realize that the nurses who work while they strike are not failing to support them, but are the reason why they can strike and patients still recieve the care we all know they must recieve during the strike. The nurses I know say they work the strikes as thier way of supporting what the striking nurses are doing. They are helping the only way they can.

It is too bad we can not form strike forces. Nurses who would travel to areas who's nurses want to strike but are ununionized or otherwize can not strike. I think many more nurses would be willing to support strike action if they knew thier actions would not injure patients. A Strike Force of Nurses who could act to bring nurses demands to management while patient care was not effected might be the one way we could get change in nursing.

I am sorry, but I have to say I disagree with you. When nurses are brought in to break strikes, the vast majority will tell you up front: MONEY. That's why they are doing it. No nurse worth his/her salt at all wants to harm patients, but Corporations harm patients every day with inadequate care.
When nurses are forced into a corner and removing their presence from the workforce is all they have, then having fellow nurses come in, make a fortune and undercut them, yes, I am sure they are angry with them. I think that is where our weakness lies, the inability to support each other as a group. It happens everyday, on every unit, the nurse with the good assignment taking it easy while the nurse who got the horrible group is at her wits end. New grads who get burned up because they have no help. All corporations have to do is throw a little money at the problem, make the nurse who takes a stand the bad guy, they win. And the patient ultimately is the loser. I have never been called upon to strike, but I do know I would never be comfortable being brought in as a way to break another nurses efforts to improve their lot in the workforce. I know a lot will disagree, money is money and we all have bills. I doubt that the answer lies in striking, more the suggestion made earlier, that we need a political voice, public education about what is at stake because it seems to me, they have no clue. Anyway. Got that of my chest, feel better.

[BradleyRN]

Originally Posted by cupcake25

No one says anything. I just don't feel sorry for them.

Well you should cupcake. You just said that youve seen very experienced nurses in tears because they cant keep up. And as annmariern said in the post right above yours....

Originally Posted by annmariern

Having been the one who stood up at one, and looked to my colleagues to back me up, they sat there in silence. So having paid the price by having my boss riding my you know what, for months after, now I sit there.

You can see why people feel their hands are tied because standing alone, they are.
We need solidarity! There is only one state making a difference and that is California thanks to the California Nurses Association. They demonstrate the solidarity and dissent needed to effect change and as a result, they have nurse/pt ratios across the board. We need one union that spans nationwide, and i think they are it! We have the numbers to seize control of this racket facilities have running off our backs. The well being of nurses and our patients is being compromised daily in the name of profit. We have to stand up together and not just sit there in silence as annmariern goes out on a limb for the rest of us. As we see, that only gets her into trouble.

[jeffrey_rn]

My initial instinct is to stay away from the union. However, because Texas does not have much experience overall with unions, I have to be honest and admit that I don't really understand everything that a union entails.

I am aware of the most superficial aspects of the costs and benefits but I would really love to hear from those of you who pay union dues. Tell me how things are better. And tell me the downside too. If it were a perfect thing, unions would be sprouting up like weeds around the country. But they're not. Why? I am here to learn.

Thanks ahead for taking the time to share.

-a fellow nurse-soldier

[BrokenRNheart]

Originally Posted by RNperdiem

Change requires work.
Change requires sacrifice of some kind(even the ability to say"poor me").
Change requires powerful leadership.

FEAR? Hopelessness? Denial?

From what I have seen, after nurses compain about the problems and are given a possible way to change it, they go crawl under a rock. I just don't get it. I assume that each individual nurse is scared to death to have her name affiliated with any such mission for fear of becoming unemployable. I hate to say that I understand, but I certainly don't agree.

A lot of other nurses will immediately say something like....you will never change it or something like that and they won't do ANYTHING to help. I wonder if they are to blame? I can certainly relate to what they are saying after seeing countless organizations and petitions and such and none of which can conjure up the number of people required to make the change.

CALIFORNIA DID IT!!!!!

And then there are nurses who complain and then when offered some sort of way to help make a difference they immediately deny that they have any problems with the field and that they love it.

I don't know how to describe the people that don't fall into the above.

link:
HOW TO MAKE A CHANGE ANONYMOUSLY

[BrokenRNheart]

I also have to agree that I don't agree with the strike...not that I have anything against any one who has done it. But the reasons are stated in previous posts and the main reason being the burden on the nurses....MONEY.

I guess I lean towards petitions and organizations that are trying to change things.

I, too, have stood up to fight......encouraged and patted on the back....thanked by employees who never gave me the time of day and pretended they didn't have the same feelings as me in the end. I received phone calls after termination from co-workers who were chronic out-loud complainers at work but insist that they keep quiet and they told me that they wished they could be as honest as me.

????

[BradleyRN]

Originally Posted by BrokenRNheart

CALIFORNIA DID IT!!!!!

Yes indeed! In California, they have nurses that come in to allow people to take their breaks. Since med-surg nurses can only have 5 patients, then they cannot watch yours while you are on break, as that would exceed their nurse/pt ratio. It makes so much greedless sense, it doesnt even sound like this country. And if they can do it, we can do it! We can make a better life for ourselves, and better outcomes for our patients.

[MAISY, RN-ER]

All you have to do is read any thread with an emotionally charged issue. I have come to the conclusion that nurses can't work together. I think for all of our similarities there are too many differences. In addition, the qualities that make us great nurses-specifically independent thinking and strength, predisposes us to be opinionated.

Physicians believe they are professionals and share a common bond-the time they have spent becoming educated and putting in time. Nurses are individuals, with different levels of schooling, different certifications and different belief systems on patient care. We don't define ourselves through out similarities, but by our differences.

As always,

JMHO
Maisy

[BrokenRNheart]

Originally Posted by MAISY, RN-ER

All you have to do is read any thread with an emotionally charged issue. I have come to the conclusion that nurses can't work together. I think for all of our similarities there are too many differences. In addition, the qualities that make us great nurses-specifically independent thinking and strength, predisposes us to be opinionated.

Physicians believe they are professionals and share a common bond-the time they have spent becoming educated and putting in time. Nurses are individuals, with different levels of schooling, different certifications and different belief systems on patient care. We don't define ourselves through out similarities, but by our differences.

As always,

JMHO
Maisy

OUCH.....I never thought about that ....or put it into words any way.

You are right.....SADLY.......right. Hmmmm

I'm still not giving up. California did it!

California DID IT!

CALIFORNIA DID IT!

It can be done! Not doing anything is the worst thing at all.

It is all about ONE THING.....SAFE RATIOS! Imagine...5 patients in MED SURG! Wow! I remember those days!

[jeffrey_rn]

Originally Posted by MAISY, RN-ER

All you have to do is read any thread with an emotionally charged issue. I have come to the conclusion that nurses can't work together. I think for all of our similarities there are too many differences. In addition, the qualities that make us great nurses-specifically independent thinking and strength, predisposes us to be opinionated.

Physicians believe they are professionals and share a common bond-the time they have spent becoming educated and putting in time. Nurses are individuals, with different levels of schooling, different certifications and different belief systems on patient care. We don't define ourselves through out similarities, but by our differences.

As always,

JMHO
Maisy

We certainly are a diverse group. But unable to unite for that diversity? I don't know. I'm a pretty skeptical guy but I think we will. Maybe not now, but it will happen in time. Nursing is a unique profession but not so dissimilar that we are an exception.

Doctors, lawyers, teachers, auto workers- all have been able to form strong political bodies. I can't believe we are any more or less opinionated or diverse than these groups. Lawyers argue the color of the sky! Doctors are divided into sub-sub-sub-specialties. If these trades can organize themselves, I know we can.

I would first like to see the ANA become stronger and more politically active, but I haven't written off supporting a union. Again, my instinct is to stay away but I have seen things get overwhelming for nurses in my hospital. I have been forced to open my mind to drastic solutions. And I have watched hospital administrators tremble at the mere whisper of "union."

I don't believe our forum debates, even when they devolve into heated arguments, prove that we can't get along. This is a great place for us to work out our thoughts and opinions, even blow off some steam. In fact, I think our active presence here implies that we do get along. We do come together. We are together even as we stand as individuals, with our own stouthearted opinions.

We need this forum for a lot of things. But I bet if you could pour through every discussion, you would find a lot of agreement and unity. The disagreements tend to put off a lot more heat than light and stand out more, yet there is greater solidarity here than meets the cursory scan of the forums.

We are going to make nursing better. And participating in these forums inspires me. I find myself becoming more political (and thoughtful, especially after reading others' ideas) and the nurse activist in me is coming alive. My future is getting brighter and I plan on playing a part in making the future of nursing brighter.

[the bridge]

Nursing, as it exists today, is designed to burn people out. The rule of the owners of the various places where nurses work is this: use as few nurses as possible to get all the work done, regardless of the impact that it will have on the quality of the care being given to the patients. I have been an RN, BSN since 1996 and it has been, at times, a very difficult career. Does anyone remember Laura Gasparis Vonfrolio, RN, PhD? She organized a Nurses March in Washington DC back in 1995 and at least 10,000 nurses showed up! I went to the next Nurses March and fewer nurses showed up, but it was still an inspirational event. She also used to publish Revolution: The Journal of Nurse Empowerment. I think it has been the goal of both the corporations that own hospitals/nursing homes and the government to reduce nursing to be nothing more than an easily exploited blue collar job. But in the end, this will hurt the community and the nursing profession too. The only thing left for nurses to do will be to ban together in blue collar-like unions that will go on strike to get what they want. This will cost the corporations more money, and they will pass this expense onto the public and the government. It is time for nurses to get together and form a high profile, professional organization that is capable of influencing both the political structure of Washington, DC and educating the public about the hazards of a deteriorating nursing profession in America.