Is it fair for the media to blame the RN in Texas for contracting Ebola?

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  1. Is it fair for the media to blame the RN in Texas for contracting Ebola?

    • 15
      Yes
    • 448
      No

463 members have participated

I am watching cnn outfront hosted by erin burnett. Throughout this program she has said the most offensive things about nurses that are outrageous. This journalist has no medical experience. Has never worked as a nurse. However, she is actively critizing somone as they fight for their life. This nurse made a huge sacrifice by caring for someone who had ebola. The head of the cdc blame the nurse, doctors are doing inteviews blame the nurse, people who have never worked in a medical setting blame the nurse. We as nurses need stand up and demand the truth be told.

Why are these 50 healthcare workers are not isolated to prevent this from from spreading?

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Rep. Burgress from Tx is standing up for us healthcare pointing out how the head of the cdc is such a hypocrite.

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Specializes in TELE, CVU, ICU.
Rep. Burgress from Tx is standing up for us healthcare pointing out how the head of the cdc is such a hypocrite.

You can't possibly be referring to this jackass:

Michael C. Burgess - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Specializes in Critical care, tele, Medical-Surgical.
You can't possibly be referring to this jackass:

Michael C. Burgess - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I learned the following as a teen babysitter:

"Sometimes people are good, and they do just what they should. But the very same people who are good sometimes are the very same people who are bad sometimes. It's funny but it's true. Its the same isn't it, for me and you?" Fred Rogers

I don't know of one politician who is always right or always wrong. Good for anyone who speaks out against blaming nurses for systemic problems.

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WE ARE NURSES. Nobody should have to tell us what a temp of 99.? means, following the kind of exposure those Texas nurses experienced. People in Cleveland are now saying she not only had a temp, but was sick enough to cancel activities.

We are outraged when we're not treated with the respect we deserve as health care professionals, but we want to excuse a gross lapse in nursing judgement.

She called the CDC because she wanted somebody to tell her it was ok, when she knew it wasn't.

I'm so sorry this young woman has found herself in such an awful place.

I'm sorry her lapse in judgement has made her a national figure. I'm sorry her need to see her family superceded the safety of everybody else around her.

But she was a nurse, and should have known better.

I am feeling the same sorts of feelings... very conflicted. I think for her to call the CDC she had to be having other symptoms and in her heart of heart she knew. I can't imagine being in her position and I pray I never am. This is truly a nightmare for all the staff at Dallas Presbyterian Hospital. It's not like it was a bad hospital but so many bad decisions and so much lack of preparedness in dealing with this terrible disease. It's not like this is the flu. It is a deadly deadly disease.

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So there was mention in the hearing that I found to be interesting. I'm assuming Ms. Vinson has a fiancee. And I'm assuming it's the fiancee that's been quarantined while the rest of her family/friends she came into contact with are self quarantined/self monitoring. It makes sense at least.

It also provides a reason as to why she was eager to make that trip to begin with. Not that I agree with her actions. I'm merely stating that traveling to see your significant other following a harrowing experience makes a lot more sense than wanting to visit Mom and Stepdad. And finally, I do believe said fiancee is likely infected.

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Specializes in ICU, APHERESIS, IV THERAPY, ONCOLOGY, BC.

The blame game is always the method applied when no one can or wants to ask more pertinent questions

examples

1. Was or has the hospital system ever addressed the high risk of infection and epidemiologic characteristics of such a virus. An honest response would be No, because this is a tropical virus and we have not been informed of its nature and virulent characteristics.

2. How safe are the protection gear used in these cases - is there evidence based knowledge on the issue ?

3. Are the various health authorities exploring the efficacy of the present gear and if so, will this be upgraded to protect staff ?

4. how far along are the various vaccines and treatments ?

5 12 hour shifts are brutal for nurses working in all departments.. Has this been addressed to alleviate stress and prevent fatigue based mistakes. ?

6. How are staff being cared for while they care for Ebola patients. Are they well nourished, hydrated and receiving needed services to maintain health and well being «? Ebola places health care personnel especially nurses in the front line.. How effectively has this been addressed.«?

These are the issues that all media and healthcare management need to address now.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
The blame game is always the method applied when no one can or wants to ask more pertinent questions

examples

1. Was or has the hospital system ever addressed the high risk of infection and epidemiologic characteristics of such a virus. An honest response would be No, because this is a tropical virus and we have not been informed of its nature and virulent characteristics.

2. How safe are the protection gear used in these cases - is there evidence based knowledge on the issue ?

3. Are the various health authorities exploring the efficacy of the present gear and if so, will this be upgraded to protect staff ?

4. how far along are the various vaccines and treatments ?

5 12 hour shifts are brutal for nurses working in all departments.. Has this been addressed to alleviate stress and prevent fatigue based mistakes. ?

6. How are staff being cared for while they care for Ebola patients. Are they well nourished, hydrated and receiving needed services to maintain health and well being «? Ebola places health care personnel especially nurses in the front line.. How effectively has this been addressed.«?

These are the issues that all media and healthcare management need to address now.

Unless there are health reporters that are nurses, then these questions are never going to be answered.

And the 12-hr shifts fatigued is open to interpretation; it could be working a 40-hour week can be prone to more errors as well per EBP findings.

In addition a specific team in place and proper staffing and training will help decrease errors, per EBP.

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Specializes in ICU, APHERESIS, IV THERAPY, ONCOLOGY, BC.
Unless there are health reporters that are nurses, then these questions are never going to be answered.

And the 12-hr shifts fatigued is open to interpretation; it could be working a 40-hour week can be prone to more errors as well per EBP findings.

In addition a specific team in place and proper staffing and training will help decrease errors, per EBP.

Agree withe the above. I was thinking of my own experiences, having worked in critical care for many years, the unit hours shifted from 8 to 12 hr shifts. We voted on this change and the end result was 12 hr shifts initially. After a no. of years, all 12 hr nurses voted to work part time with 8 hr shifts. This was a multidisciplinary ICU ( med with surg and isolation rooms)

The level of fatigue was higher especially after working 12 hrs in an isolation chamber with full gear. I don't think that has changed. Both types of shifts can induce errors, based largely on the levels of patient care, associated stress, risk factors and physical fatigue.

RE; Informed questions, media need to do their research for responsible reporting. Sensationalism does nothing but promote guess work, panic and dis-information. Just as we as health professionals are expected to act responsibly, ask when we don't know and source correctly, media representatives also have to act responsibly and report accurately... something that is forgotten or ignored during crises. Hard to do , but a modicum of common sense must prevail as well.

Thanks for listening.....

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Specializes in Emergency.

Why not blame the government for allowing flights from infected areas to land in the United States? They still refuse to deal with this issue. Secondly, let's blame the airline and their screening policies for allowing this man to fly. They verbalized that they thought people would be honest in filling out the questionnaire! Just so much easier to blame the victim - sound familiar?

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Specializes in LTC, Acute care.
I don't see how closing the borders would cause civil war. I think leaving the borders open will tempt anyone exposed to an Ebola patient to take a flight to the US or Europe hoping for better care if they have Ebola too which will leave more healthcare workers at risk of contracting it as well as we are not trained or have adequate protective equipment to safely care for these people, aside from the 4 specially trained hospitals in the nation.

This Ebola epidemic started in West Africa since December 2013, if people over there were inclined to take flights to Europe/US/western world for better care, Mr. Duncan's case wouldn't have been the first in 9 months. Just saying...

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Specializes in Critical Care.
Rep. Burgress from Tx is standing up for us healthcare pointing out how the head of the cdc is such a hypocrite.

I'm all for recognizing those who advocate for healthcare workers, but I don't think 'masturbating fetus' guy is really who we want to tie our wagon to.

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