Governator kicks nurses butts!!!

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Dec 9, 2004

I thought this would happen when Arnold was voted in. I can't believe the people of Calif would pick such a person.

Is the CNA going to fight back?

SmilingBluEyes · Dec 9, 2004

Personally I think a 1:6 patient ratio on med/surg is a lot. I really don't care what everyone is doing. The nurses in California are doing the right thing and if they get changes in nurse patient ratios nurses all over the country will benefit.
"I would love to have fewer pts. per shift, but what would the extra staffing do to the cost of healthcare?"
The high cost of healthcare is not because of nurses. I don't know how long you have been a nurse or what experience you have but I could write a book about the wasted money in healthcare. Its not nurses who want to take care of their patients. That really hit a nerve.

It hit a nerve with me also. And, it Sounds more like an administrator or manager making these comments, not a staff nurse. Maybe that explains it.....

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Dec 9, 2004

If I read the article correctly, he was calling the union a special interest group, not the nursing profession as a whole a special interest group. I find it hard to believe people use so much energy to protest a 1:6 ratio on a med/surg floor! What do they do when they get that next admit due to the ER overflowing, and the floor was originally staffed in the morning for what the census was at that time? Are they unable to handle new admits? Even with the on-call nurse coming in to help, sometimes it is hard to predict how many times the new admits will make the rounds of the nurses available. Do what you can, stabilize the patients, and then we have, guess what? ANOTHER SHIFT COMING IN! I would love to have fewer pts. per shift, but what would the extra staffing do to the cost of healthcare? The profit of the hospital? We already have another thread here about how Americans are deprived of healthcare. The nurses apparently acted in an unprofessional manner, that is too bad. But, if you can't stand the heat, as they say.....

tommycher,

Your avatar is really cute but your views are making me ill.

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Dec 9, 2004

A major example of why voting him in was a bad idea.

Gomer · Dec 9, 2004

The man is an idiot! He treats nurses, and women in general, like objects to meet his own personal needs and desires. HIPAA aside, he has been a patient at a hospital I used to work at and he was one nasty self-centered patient (Maria was also a patient and she's no bargain either). He won the election because we Californians are idiots too. Thank God, at this time, he can't run for President.

dazzle256 · Dec 9, 2004

It hit a nerve with me also. And, it Sounds more like an administrator or manager making these comments, not a staff nurse. Maybe that explains it.....

Here is a thought....reduction in administrative and managerial positions.

dazzle256 · Dec 9, 2004

Okay let me see if I am getting this right...at first I thought the bill he rejected would ratio out 1 nurse to 6 patients..but it was already 1 nurse to 6 patients and he rejected a bill to make it 1 nurse to 5 patients????
Okay I support my fellow nurses out there, but wow...it is 1 nurse to 8 patients here by law...to have 6 only would be great! Maybe he sees that it worked in other states...and that is why he rejected it??? Maybe we should focus on a National ratio and get everyone on the same page..that may help?!?!?! I mean, if other states have a larger ratio..go figure someone may do a bit of that "well if they can do it..so can we" especially someone that doesn't give a hoot?
What are the ratios in your state???..Oregon here, and this is what I have been told and had to endure when I worked in hospital...we had one per as many as 8 if the census was that high (yeah right, some nights (swing shift) I would have as many as 9 neurovasc/med surg!). I have heard it was the same in Washington state, but don't quote me on that.

When you had 8 or 9 patients were you really able to give the care that the patients should have been given? Sure it can work to have 9 or more med/surg pts but things can still get missed......things that would not have been with a little bit more attention. I know its happened to me. Long story but I had a patient that 3 days post op should have had H&H's drawn. We finally relised that day when she got really bad her HBG was 4 and she had never had a level drawn sense surgery. Sure the doctors on her case should have caught it...sure the nurses before me should have caught it....bottom line we always seem to be working by just keeping our heads above water. Its doable but no acceptable outcomes. JMO

ICUnowOHN · Dec 9, 2004

Here in MI it's 2-3 ICU, and as many as 10-12 per RN stepdown, and lucky if you get an LPN to help, usually it's CNA. Count your blessings. National number would help out a great deal of patients/nurses everywhere.

And the acuity level is pretty high. Usually 2-3 fresh Open hearts out of ICU that day.

NurseGuy_in_06 · Dec 9, 2004

A major example of why voting him in was a bad idea.

Here in GA we voted out a governor that alienated the state's teachers. He can always be replaced and knowing how he is his ego would take a major hit.

SmilingBluEyes · Dec 9, 2004

Here is a thought....reduction in administrative and managerial positions.

yea.....nice thought.

hypnotic_nurse · Dec 9, 2004

The man is an idiot! He treats nurses, and women in general, like objects to meet his own personal needs and desires.

If he ever managed to make it into the presidency (thank goodness he is not native born so that makes it much less likely) he will make Bill Clinton look like a saint.

I wish we'd all get over our fascination with celebrity. I love him in movies, don't like him much in real life.

pickledpepperRN · Dec 9, 2004

http://www.calnurse.org/

http://www.calnurse.org/?Action=Category&id=251

The actual law - http://radicalfusion.org/files.calnurse.org/assets/ab_394_bill_19991010_chaptered.pdf

CNA's 12 year campaign for safe staffing - http://radicalfusion.org/files.calnurse.org/assets/ratios12yearcamp.pdf

Actual regulations - http://www.dhs.ca.gov/lnc/pubnotice/NTPR/R-37-01_Regulation_Text.pdf

More than most want to know about the "Emergency Regulations" - http://www.applications.dhs.ca.gov/regulations/searchRegulation.asp?REGID=R-01-04E&submit1=Submit

The most frightening aspect of the "emergency" regulations are that hospitals have been given "Flexibility" in staffing emergency departments. Hospitals are not required to keep a record of patients assigned to each nurse. They only have to show an attempt to return to the safe staffing ratios arter an unexpected influx or patients.

I believe that since they have no trouble finding staff when JCAHO visits I am sceptical when they say, "Sorry. We tried everything. Do the best you can.".

I personally think it unprofessional to let my patients suffer because I cannot be in two places at once.

The ratios that saved lives and prevented suffering were:

70217. Nursing Service Staff.

Hospitals designated by the Local Emergency Medical Services (LEMS) Agency as a "base hospital", as defined in section 1797.58 of the Health and Safety Code, shall have either a licensed physician or a registered nurse on duty to respond to the base radio 24 hours each day. When the duty of base radio responder is assigned to a registered nurse, that registered nurse may assist by performing other nursing tasks when not responding to radio calls, but shall be immediately available to respond to requests for medical direction on the base radio. The registered nurse assigned as base radio responder shall not be counted in the licensed nurse-to-patient ratios.

When licensed nursing staff are attending critical care patients in the emergency department, the licensed nurse-to-patient ratio shall be 1:2 or fewer critical care patients at all times. A patient in the emergency department shall be considered a critical care patient when the patient meets the criteria for admission to a critical care service area within the hospital.

Only registered nurses shall be assigned to critical trauma patients in the emergency department, and a minimum registered nurse-to-critical trauma patient ratio of 1:1 shall be maintained at all times. A critical trauma patient is a patient who has injuries to an anatomic area that : (1) require life saving interventions, or (2) in conjunction with unstable vital signs, pose an immediate threat to life or limb.