The MNM came into being as a discussion on a nursing website. That discussion than became a growing idea. Eventually that idea became an organization. We are now a growing organization of nurses from varied and diverse backgrounds and educations. It is the thought of this organization that massive changes in nursing and in how healthcare is delivered must be made. It is up to nurses to prompt those changes. Nurses are the true patient advocates, and in order to do so we must advocate for ourselves. To do this effectively the thought is to bring all nurses together. Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses, and Certified Nurse Assistants. Each one of us makes up the important bedside team, and without us healthcare would not exist. We believe that each component of the bedside team have practice acts and certification limits that must be followed to enhance appropriate patient care, and that it is inappropriate for administrators that are not licensed bedside caregivers to put any of us into positions that demand otherwise.
It is the vision of the Million Nurse March that the diverse voices within the field need to come together under one banner, with common ground. The MNM is the vehicle in which that can occur. We invite all organizations that have nurses within their membership to pool resources together to make this vision a reality.
We invite all others that are concerned about patient care and the state of healthcare to join with us. Other healthcare workers, advocacy groups, physicians, educators and public citizens. All who are concerned and feel that they can endorse and support the tenets of this organization are welcome to participate. We offer the caveat that our platform is a nursing advocacy platform that will also enhance patient care and other individual agendas cannot come in front of that.
Our platform is for federal legislation on these specific issues
1.Nationwide staff to patient ratios based on patient acuity; in every area that nursing care is provided. Hospitals, nursing homes, clinics etc...
2.National legislation that prohibits the use of mandatory overtime that will protect all bedside caregivers.
3.National legislation that will put enforceable and strong whistleblower protections into place for all healthcare workers.
4.National legislation that will prohibit the performance of skilled nursing functions by unlicensed staff.
5.Restrictions on unsafe floating practices.
6.Appropriate monetary compensation for skills and science based knowledge.
Without which patient care suffers.
This platform addresses the working conditions that are poorly impacting all nursing care across the country. It is the working conditions that have prompted the mass exodus of nurses from the bedside. This platform addresses retention issues.
The other side of the platform must address recruitment issues. As a profession we must bury the negativity that has run rampant through our ranks. Encourage young persons to pursue entry level nursing programs, support increased funding for those that pursue nursing programs as well as increased funding and other support programs that will allow those that wish to pursue the higher education opportunities of the field.
We need to value, respect and celebrate those that work strictly at the bedside. We need to encourage the healthcare industry to acknowledge that bedside nursing care is the bedrock on which healthcare rests, on which good patients outcomes are impossible without. We need to educate the public regarding what nurses do and how we affect the outcomes of every patient we come in contact with. We also have to acknowledge and effectively deal with the dynamics that encourage and perpetuate the mentality of "eating our young" be that the new graduate, or the experienced nurse that is new to a different field of practice. We must quit setting fires in our own house.
The MNM has set aside two days in which to address our issues to our national legislators. May 10, 2002 for meeting with legislators that are willing to sit down and listen to our concerns, and May 11, 2002 for a March and rally to protest the treatment of nurses by the healthcare industry, highlighting how that treatment has directly impacted and exacerbated the nursing shortage. This time will also be used to educate the public and media as to what nurses do day after day, how what we do has a direct effect on patient care outcomes and to celebrate our profession for the joys it can give us as well as the care and compassion it can give others.
Please join us in this worthwhile endeavor. Working together we will have a tremendous impact on our lives and the care of our patients.
I post a challenge to all nurses that are unhappy with the nursing situation as it is.
Quit working at the hospital you currently work at. Immediately sign on with an agency where you can work when you want, get paid excellent wages, and be happy...works for all of us...what would the hospitals and docs do then?
I post a challenge to all nurses that are unhappy with the nursing situation as it is.
Quit working at the hospital you currently work at. Immediately sign on with an agency where you can work when you want, get paid excellent wages, and be happy...works for all of us...what would the hospitals and docs do then?
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
agreed Tim..it is always best to research all the specifics about agencies, the work they do, the contract stipulations, the clients they have, what they expect, etc. etc. The caveat is "buyer beware". It is possible to have a very fulfilling bedside career as a supplemental staffer. The individual personality of the nurse plays a big role on success or failure too. I will be hosting a teleclass in the near future to address some of these key issues..Should be fun and interesting.
There is also a dark side to agency work, though. "We'll call you when we have work available." Which really means, on a Saturday afternoon, they call you at 2:20 p.m. to find out if you could be in "B.F.Egypt" for a 3-11 shift! The ones I have worked for don't deduct taxes [which really muddies water at the end of the year], and NONE of them, that I know of, give health benefits.
Then, there is the mentality of the nursing staff at the facility you are placed at: "He's the agency nurse... he's making $36.00/hour... let him figure it out..." Heck with the fact that it could mean a patient not getting the care and services he/she needs.
Some people love agency work [my friend Sue does it- makes a small fortune at it], but she is also married and her husband's insurance covers them both. Moral of the story, it isn't right for everyone.
agreed Tim..it is always best to research all the specifics about agencies, the work they do, the contract stipulations, the clients they have, what they expect, etc. etc. The caveat is "buyer beware". It is possible to have a very fulfilling bedside career as a supplemental staffer. The individual personality of the nurse plays a big role on success or failure too. I will be hosting a teleclass in the near future to address some of these key issues..Should be fun and interesting.
Woman's Party members were more inclined to see themselves as warriors. Lavinia L. Dock of Pennsylvania, 60 years old, was an often-arrested member of the Woman's Party. She was a trained nurse, and had worked at the Henry Street Settlement in New York. In all, she served forty-three days in prison for her suffrage activities. Her article, reprinted here from the Woman's Party newspaper, gives a good sense of how many Woman's Party members saw themselves:
The Young Are At The Gates
If any one says to me: "Why the picketing for Suffrage?" I should say in reply, "Why the fearless spirit of youth? Why does it exist and make itself manifest?" Is it not really that our whole social world would be likely to harden and toughen into a dreary mass of conventional negations and forbiddances--into hopeless layers of conformity and caste, did not the irrepressible energy and animation of youth, when joined to the clear-eyed sham-hating intelligence of the young, break up the dull masses and set a new pace for laggards to follow?
What is the potent spirit of youth? Is it not the spirit of revolt, of rebellion against senseless and useless and deadening things? Most of all, against injustice, which is of all stupid things the stupidest?
LAVINIA DOCK
YES!! Lavinia Dock an outstanding nurse leader - and just one more feisty NY RN making a difference.
" Miss Dock was active in the development of the American Nurses Association. In 1893, she became secretary of the American Society of Superintnedents of Training Schools for Nurses - which later became the
American Nurses Association (ANA). She also functioned as an editor for the
American Journal of Nursing. She was also involved in the development of
the International Council of Nursing.
Additional information can be obtained from a number of published
biographical dictionaries.
Library
New York State Nurses Association
11 Cornell Road
Latham, NY 12110
(518) 782-9400 x266
(518) 782-9532 (fax)
Join us in New York City for NYSNA's 100th Anniversary Celebration Nov 1 - 4, 2001
and our 2001 Annual Convention to celebrate New York nurses from our past & present... NY nurses who made a difference for all and continue to do so... NY nurses like Miss Lavinia Dock..."
Woman's Party members were more inclined to see themselves as warriors. Lavinia L. Dock of Pennsylvania, 60 years old, was an often-arrested member of the Woman's Party. She was a trained nurse, and had worked at the Henry Street Settlement in New York. In all, she served forty-three days in prison for her suffrage activities. Her article, reprinted here from the Woman's Party newspaper, gives a good sense of how many Woman's Party members saw themselves:
The Young Are At The Gates
If any one says to me: "Why the picketing for Suffrage?" I should say in reply, "Why the fearless spirit of youth? Why does it exist and make itself manifest?" Is it not really that our whole social world would be likely to harden and toughen into a dreary mass of conventional negations and forbiddances--into hopeless layers of conformity and caste, did not the irrepressible energy and animation of youth, when joined to the clear-eyed sham-hating intelligence of the young, break up the dull masses and set a new pace for laggards to follow?
What is the potent spirit of youth? Is it not the spirit of revolt, of rebellion against senseless and useless and deadening things? Most of all, against injustice, which is of all stupid things the stupidest?
LAVINIA DOCK
YES!! Lavinia Dock an outstanding nurse leader - and just one more feisty NY RN making a difference.
" Miss Dock was active in the development of the American Nurses Association. In 1893, she became secretary of the American Society of Superintnedents of Training Schools for Nurses - which later became the
American Nurses Association (ANA). She also functioned as an editor for the
American Journal of Nursing. She was also involved in the development of
the International Council of Nursing.
Additional information can be obtained from a number of published
biographical dictionaries.
Library
New York State Nurses Association
11 Cornell Road
Latham, NY 12110
(518) 782-9400 x266
(518) 782-9532 (fax)
Join us in New York City for NYSNA's 100th Anniversary Celebration Nov 1 - 4, 2001
and our 2001 Annual Convention to celebrate New York nurses from our past & present... NY nurses who made a difference for all and continue to do so... NY nurses like Miss Lavinia Dock..."
I'm all for joining nurses nationwide for creating change and believe we all need to join together as change agents in order for this to occur. It saddens me however, that the very reason we need to fight for change, oppression, continues even among our own, as evidence by some of the oppressive and negative comments read in a few of the responses. Interestingly, they are generally made by males! So I must say, if you don't want to join us please do step aside because there are some nurses who truly believe they are worth more than they get credit for. Instead of criticism, offer support or if your views or values differ, offer suggestions. Who knows, you may just have something worthwhile to say!
I'm all for joining nurses nationwide for creating change and believe we all need to join together as change agents in order for this to occur. It saddens me however, that the very reason we need to fight for change, oppression, continues even among our own, as evidence by some of the oppressive and negative comments read in a few of the responses. Interestingly, they are generally made by males! So I must say, if you don't want to join us please do step aside because there are some nurses who truly believe they are worth more than they get credit for. Instead of criticism, offer support or if your views or values differ, offer suggestions. Who knows, you may just have something worthwhile to say!
4n6msn2b
7 Posts
I post a challenge to all nurses that are unhappy with the nursing situation as it is.
Quit working at the hospital you currently work at. Immediately sign on with an agency where you can work when you want, get paid excellent wages, and be happy...works for all of us...what would the hospitals and docs do then?