Staffing Ratios and a big reason that they'll not likely happen soon

toomuchbaloney · May 6, 2023

Dangerously lean bedside staffing and lean nursing support staffing is a profitable business model. It doesn't matter to health business that it is also a significant contributor to falling health outcomes.

Hoosier_RN, MSN · May 6, 2023

toomuchbaloney said:

Dangerously lean bedside staffing and lean nursing support staffing is a profitable business model. It doesn't matter to health business that it is also a significant contributor to falling health outcomes.

Agree. It's almost like they don't care how many lawsuits/settlements they have to pay. It scares me to think that I'll ever need care

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · May 6, 2023

Hoosier_RN said:

Agree. It's almost like they don't care how many lawsuits/settlements they have to pay. It scares me to think that I'll ever need care

Be afraid.. be very afraid. I have been a patient three times in the last two years.

Hoosier_RN, MSN · May 7, 2023

Been there,done that said:

Be afraid.. be very afraid. I have been a patient three times in the last two years.

My mom has as well. She is shocked to say the least. She retired from nursing in 2014. Buuuuut, she always worked in surgery, couldn't figure out what the squawking about staffing was. You know, surgery has to have 'x' persons in there, minimum, or it doesn't happen. She had bilateral knee surgery about a year ago, and while in the hospital when she didn't get immediate attention for toileting, or other, needs the light went off. From someone who graduated in 1964 from a hospital diploma program to see this, she says she's ashamed of administration and up for their willful understaffing. My cousin had just graduated with her BSN from the local university, she and her friends had to go elsewhere, none of the hospitals had job postings for new grads, barely any for experienced nurses, but crying short staffed due to covid. It's an eye opener for sure

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · May 7, 2023

"She didn't get immediate attention for toileting" Sigh .. neither did I. Got reamed by the nurse for peeing the bed. Tried to PM you.

Susie2310 · May 7, 2023

Hoosier_RN said:

Quote

My cousin had just graduated with her BSN from the local university, she and her friends had to go elsewhere, none of the hospitals had job postings for new grads, barely any for experienced nurses, but crying short staffed due to covid.

My understanding is that some facilities have been receiving funding from State allocated Covid funds which have been paying for travel nurses to supplement the staffing . I don't know if this is still happening currently.

Tenebrae, BSN, RN · May 8, 2023

Been there,done that said:

"She didn't get immediate attention for toileting" Sigh .. neither did I. Got reamed by the nurse for peeing the bed. Tried to PM you.

I wish that shocked me more.

Cant believe that there are still nurses who think its appropriate to ream people out for body functions beyond their control

klone, MSN, RN · May 8, 2023

My letter to Jeremy Olson, the reporter for the Strib who covers healthcare stories, sent to him yesterday morning after I read the article in my local paper:

Hi Jeremy,

I am a nurse leader who has been watching with great interest the fear and panic this legislation strikes in the hearts of hospital executives and the MHA. I have read both bills word for word, took notes, and written up potential plans and ideas should this legislation be made into law. And I'm not worried. You see, I have worked as a nurse leader in many different states before coming back to my home state, MN, 3 years ago. And I've worked in states where this legislation was already a reality, either through state laws, or through collective bargaining agreements.

As a hospital leader, I'm here to say that there is nothing scary, nothing radical, nothing crazy about this legislation. Allowing direct care nurses to have a voice when it comes to safe staffing is the SENSIBLE and respectful thing to do. They are the experts. They are the ones doing the work. They know what safe and unsafe staffing ratios look like. This decision should not be the sole purview of the C-Suite executives.

This legislation does not give carte blanche to nurses to run the show. It gives them an equal voice. And it forces hospitals to be mindful and thoughtful in their decision making, and give equal weight to patient safety as they do to profits. Maybe they will need to limit the number of elective surgeries on a given day. Maybe they will need to give 10% ATB wage increases to the nurses, instead of 7%, in order to compel nurses to come back to bedside care, or to come home to permanent positions rather than travel.

Three years ago, nurses were "healthcare heroes" and now they're "greedy". Who they really are, are people who simply want to be listened to and respected for their expertise. They are the experts at knowing what safe staffing ratios look like. The world trusted them with our lives the last 3 years. Why are they suddenly now untrustworthy, and lack common sense to know the difference between safe vs unsafe staffing, and reasonable vs unreasonable demands?

This legislation can work, and it is not the death knell of our healthcare system, the way MHA would have us all believe. I've done this work. And I know from experience that it works.

Regards,

Name Redacted, MSN, RNC
A nurse manager for a large healthcare network in Minneapolis

Hoosier_RN, MSN · May 8, 2023

Susie2310 said:

My understanding is that some facilities have been receiving funding from State allocated Covid funds which have been paying for travel nurses to supplement the staffing . I don't know if this is still happening currently.

That particular hospital wasn't using travelers anymore, so that didn't even play into it. But the fact that the American taxpayer (me and the collective you) paid those wages while the suits still got their huge bonuses is a crying shame!

Hoosier_RN, MSN · May 8, 2023

Been there,done that said:

"She didn't get immediate attention for toileting" Sigh .. neither did I. Got reamed by the nurse for peeing the bed. Tried to PM you.

I don't know why you couldn't PM me, but suffice it to say, mom got the same treatment. She was not impressed and reported her to the CNO (who is her friend). She got an apology, but after that humiliation, an apology is pretty lame. Especially when you consider many don't have an ear to bend adter being treated this way and this goes unreported. Yes, I'm scared of my future healthcare situation for sure!

Althea McLeish, MSN, RN · May 10, 2023

This article came across my LinkedIn feed last week, and I was really surprised at the position taken by the Mayo Clinic.

Definitely something to keep an eye on.