lee1

Come over to NJ and see what the ratios are in the NJ hospitals. Probably you are right that no newly arrived nurses have come for years but the problem still exists that they will just NOT speak up except for a few and that does not help even in the unionized hospitals. They basically give great care but do as they are told or just don't complain about the working conditions. When a hospital is 70% Filipino nurses this causes a BIG problem with the rest of the nurses that are struggling for better working conditions. Management just gets away with what ever they want in these conditions.

I agree with all of the above, also when it comes to nursing unions within hospitals they are very reluctant to participate verbally and just go along with the crowd. For the most part they do NOT help the unions get ahead.

Yes, we went on strike approx. 10 years ago, we were out approx. 5 days and for the most part the CEO of the hospital did NOT get truthful info or he never would have locked the nurses out. We had already gotten a pitiful pension from the union. (then the next year we found the union leaders who were not nurses had embelssed the money so we had to switch unions) in a negotiation prior. We did get money from the state for the days we were without work. Very important for nurses to be part of the negotiating committee and voice their concerns, plus be an active voice in your union membership, now we are an all nurse union led by nurses from our own hospital but still have many issues. I am retired now (the retirement pension is pitiful even though they counted 30 years service)and many nurses just sit back and let the few leaders do everything so sometimes you do not get a true voice. Plus the public really does not understand what nurses do, what their retirement benefits are (nothing in reality especially in the medical area except your Medicare).

I think there is another problem especially where I live and that is cultural. Many nurses in the NJ NY area come from a culture where women seem to be totally run by men so as nurses they r afraid to speak up, afraid they will be shipped back so to speak. Even in a Union setting they rarely speak out Even after many years here. They have created a great disservice to their fellow workers.

Many states including NJ have started and have been for many years proposing safe staffing legislation that would mandate nursing/pt ratios for RNs and Nursing aides especially in LTC facilities. Why are nurses afraid speak up and push for this??? In NJ currently the NJ A1470 and NJ S 989 establish minimum RN staffing standards for hospitals, ambulatory surgery and certain DHS facilities A 382 is for minimum nurse aide ratios in nursing homes. Lee

I worked Cardiac Rehab full time the last 10 years before I retired, but, I worked CCU/Cardiac Rehab split for many years before that so I got to see many of the patients coming and going, plus I also did inpt teaching before the pt were discharged from CCU or Cardiac Surgical telemetry. We also did heart transplants, LVADS, etc. etc. So the hospital was very intensive and something new was always coming around to learn. Cardiac rehab was great as it was not as physically demanding as CCU but the same brain stress was there. Plus, I was the only full time RN, we did finally get certification but that took a great deal of time.

Until nurses SPEAK UP and stop being whipping posts and just grumbling about their lot, NOTHING WILL CHANGE. Get some backbone and refuse unsafe staffing, protest to your politicians, make them aware of the situations. The nursing associations are full of managers who owe their souls to the establishment and will not do anything to help you despite years of research showing the need for safer staffing levels. What is wrong is the failure to speak up for yourself and letting things just go on as usual thinking someone else will do the work for you.

Hi all, just wondering what the RN staffing ratios look like now this year 2017 in subacute rehab here in NJ. I just retired from hospital nursing but have inlaw now in subacute who broke her femur. When I went to visit yesterday it looked like 1 wing held about 20 pts and that was 2 RN and 2 aides during the day until 11pm. Then after 11pm 1 RN and 1 aide. If that is subacute what is nursing home staffing??? Really appropriate???

Then we should try to get federal legislation passed rather than going state by state. Any other news about these bills??

Has anyone ever thought about a nationwide "class action suit" against hospitals for endangering nurse's licenses due to unsafe staffing??

and do you really think that the ANA will sponsor this. I think the ANA is made up of more management type RNs than staff RNs.

Why does it seem that nurses here in the USA cannot get safe staffing laws passed. Only California has been able to do this

http://nj1015.com/is-new-jersey-facing-a-new-nursing-shortage/

Really, do you think there is a shortage of RNs where you live. Have all of the RNs recently graduated found jobs? Is it a ploy to bring in more immigrant nurses???

Don't forget that most nurses in the US work for private hospitals which give them no medical/dental insurance, no medical perks of anykind when they leave. No life insurance unless you now will pay for it privately. All of those extras, including vacation time, sick time, etc. etc. can add another 40% to your base salary.

What happens to you all if you attempt to drive to work and the roads are flooded so bad you are putting yourself at risk. Can you call the police to take you into work or does the hospital come out and get you. You should not be terminated if this puts your life at risk.

These complaints have been going on for decades. When will nurses unite and demand fair working conditions ?? A national union, where nurses do not work for a hospital as hospitals only seem to know how to take advantage and the nurses allow themselves to be abused. A national run business of some sort that hires and pays nurses so as to eliminate the constant cycle of abuse and licensure risk. Look around your hospitals etc. how many new non nursing departments have been created with those employees getting their breaks and meals. Just a dream I guess but someone must be able to think out of the box. Why do nurses have to be paid by hospitals?

Yes you are right and these studies are from years ago. Again, it is all about the mighty dollar and the squeaky wheel. The general public does not see these studies and outcries from working nurses apparently most are too afraid of losing their jobs to complain, so the terrible cycle repeats itself on and on. I am so glad I have retired now as these fights have been going on for so long with no results. I would not recommend nursing to my own children at this point.

Just my 2 cents, but another problem is the huge number of foreign born nurses who have come here from countries where women do not speak up to complain. SOOO, who benefits when no one complains, obviously nothing gets better. When I graduated school foreign nurses were not available and there was no shortage of nurses. Hospital propaganda to keep salaries low and working conditions horrendous. Unions help now but only to a certain degree if nurses themselves do not speak up and demand what they need.

I will be 70 this August and I was lucky to have gotten into outpt care about 10 years ago after working critical care since I graduated from school. Had been doing part time outpt care and critical care for 10 years before that as my hospital allowed me to split my time like that. Have been working per diem since I retired at 66 but still in the same outpt area I was. Will take my own SSI in August, have been taking only 1/2 of my husband's for now, so will also get the bonus promised us if we wait until 70 to take our SSI. I do get a small pension from my nursing union---enough to pay my taxes---I live in NJ so you know the taxes are a nightmare. I live between 2 daughters and their kids so not interested in moving out of state right now or downsizing my house as the over 55 houses her in my area are expensive (over $400,000) and the taxes are not kind either. It has worked out for me as I saw the writing on the wall many years ago and had paid off my house mortgage by the time my kids entered college, so have paid their college fees and they are both now married so big expenses are over unless I feel to buy another house that would cost more than the one I have had for the last 35 years. I was very lucky I never got hurt while working all these past years, did have an accident while babysitting though 2 years ago that took awhile to recover from but I was already retired when that happened. Working critical care can certainly take a toll both physically and emotionally. I was glad when I decided to quit critical care as I could not stand the ethical dilemmas we were faced with in regards to allowing the elderly to die peaceful deaths. Now maybe I might decide to volunteer but that will be all as still helping with 5 grandchildren (I never had that luck with my own kids)

In my over 45 years of nursing primarily in intensive care units, and head of several important nursing committees, this is my take. There are too many nurses who work just for a salary, do NOT speak up about anything, and go on their merry way. It was not this way many years ago but with the advent of 12 hour shifts, many nurses work for more than 1 employer and there are many nurses from other cultures where speaking up is not allowed. Plus, even in management you can see that the important nursing exec jobs have been diminished in power, so even if you have a voice it is not carried through to the few in power to do anything about it. Of course, communication is the most important tool we have but too few use it, most (the every growing senior managers) still do NOT understand what nurses do nor do they ask.

I am almost 70, will renew my license one more time as still working cardiac outpt clinic which I was lucky to get into after many years in critical care nursing (which I absolutely would not go back to doing). In all of my over 40 years of experience I have not seen especially in area where I live an increase in pt/nurse ratios at the local hospitals and we all know that patient acuity has gotten higher and higher. What is wrong with nurses? Are they afraid to complain to change things??? And yes, I see many departments in the hospital that seem to have many workers but NOT the nursing floors.

what my former co-workers in the ICU say to me when I ask how they are doing. "same ____, different day, for the last 20 years. Most has to do with staffing and acuity of the patients. Thanks God I have retired after working as a ICU nurse for over 40 years. The nursing staffing has not changed BUT the numbers of middle managers in the hospital environment and the numbers of higherups has increased with new positions being created for them constantly. Something is wrong with this picture.

I am sure all who had contact with him are in isolation for 21 days. That is the process that has been enforced throughout the country

well so much for last week, this poor patient just died here and hopefully noone else gets infected from taking care of him