I have read many descriptions of situations where the nursing staff was being asked, required, demanded, to work harder without any additional compensation. I have read many comments by nurses where it is said that they feel like administration is "trying to get us to quit." Other comments such as "it feels like administration is trying to get the experienced nurses to leave."
Consider this, in our society healthcare is about making money. Healthcare is not a right but a commodity to be bought and sold like any other. Sure, there are social programs that are tax supported designed to be a safety net, like Medicaid, and then the Medicare program for older people and some disabled.
All of the entities that run the healthcare system are about decreasing operating expenses and/or improving revenues and/or profits. Hospitals want to make money. Government programs want to spend less on providing benefits. Commercial insurance providers want to increase profits and decrease their expenses. No matter how you look at it and from what perspective, it is about the money in the end.
Nursing salaries is the single most expensive line item for hospitals. If a way can be found to get rid of high paid (in their opinion) nurses it will be done. Nursing care is not valued as it should be and there is the "any warm body" mentality out there. If you think I am being extreme in thinking that perhaps nursing is being shoved out of the picture, think again. The evidence is all around that if a way can be found to provice care without having to pay an RN to do it, it will be done and nurses will be out of a job.
