Why are RNs scared of Fighting the Hospital Admin?

U.S.A. Texas

Published

Just a questions why are so many Nurses here in Texas scared to stand with the 3 Fired Nurses in Mesquite and to stand up to the Hospital admin?

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

I don't think people are scared or fearful to stand with the terminated nurses.

Rather, I believe that people are totally apathetic to the entire situation.

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I don't think people are scared or fearful to stand with the terminated nurses.

Rather, I believe that people are totally apathetic to the entire situation.

Then why be apathetic? Do nurses not know the power they hold? Do Nurses not Know that they are have rights under state and federal law? I am shocked that so many people speak out in support hear but not in public and not with the Nurse from Mesquite. If every Nurses in Texas hell if 25% of the Nurses in Texas stood strong with these brave nurses from Mesquite then there would be change in the Ratio laws in Texas and Hospitals could not do what they are doing to nurses.

When will enough be enough?

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Specializes in ER, PACU, CORRECTIONAL HEALTH, FLIGHT.

God bless Texas but i must say, and hate to say it cuz i dislike California but they got the right idea-they have unions that protect nurses, they have VERY rigid nurse:patient ratio laws, and RN's have POWER there. and look at the VERY HIGH salaries in California. heck, even prison nurses make 7500/month there! (and that's one of the lowest paying specialties in nursing!)..so you can only imagine what ER nurses make!

why should nurses be scared? we are IN DEMAND! we can get a job tomorrow, yesterday, today, ANYWHERE!!!

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Specializes in Utilization Management.
Just a questions why are so many Nurses here in Texas scared to stand with the 3 Fired Nurses in Mesquite and to stand up to the Hospital admin?

I'd probably think twice before I did anything that might wreck my career, ruin my lifestyle, and harm my family.

I mean, it's very noble-sounding to come out of a corner and fight for better patient care, but many people who take up the battle (and many more on the sidelines) have no idea what the personal cost is.

From what I'm reading, this Group One already has a tight squeeze on the profession and I would certainly understand those who could not make the sacrifice that it would take to oppose them.

The best I can do is pray for the courageous nurses who do fight, because their cause is just.

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God bless Texas but i must say, and hate to say it cuz i dislike California but they got the right idea-they have unions that protect nurses, they have VERY rigid nurse:patient ratio laws, and RN's have POWER there. and look at the VERY HIGH salaries in California. heck, even prison nurses make 7500/month there! (and that's one of the lowest paying specialties in nursing!)..so you can only imagine what ER nurses make!

why should nurses be scared? we are IN DEMAND! we can get a job tomorrow, yesterday, today, ANYWHERE!!!

...but have you looked at the cost of living in CA?

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Specializes in ER, PACU, CORRECTIONAL HEALTH, FLIGHT.

absolutely....it really is comparative...basically no matter where you live, your salary is the same if you look at the cost of living. i mean, if there was a place where RN's got paid MEGA BUCKS and the cost of living was very low, dont ya think we would ALL be there?

...but have you looked at the cost of living in CA?
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Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.

i am curious about this Group One that has been mentioned in previous posts that blackballs nurses in DFW metroplex. but if it is a credit reporting agency, how would it have personal non-credit-related info on nurses? i dont get it. and if this is true, what would they "blackball" someone for? i guarantee ya, most hospitals wouldnt even pay mind to that list, because they are critically short-staffed.

Please do a search for GroupOne, there are large numbers of threads here about it.

Most of the hospitals that go through GroupOne, are forprofit, most notably Columbia/HCA facilities. And yes, they do pay a great deal of attention to it - it does not matter how short staffed they are.

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God bless Texas but i must say, and hate to say it cuz i dislike California but they got the right idea-they have unions that protect nurses, they have VERY rigid nurse:patient ratio laws, and RN's have POWER there. and look at the VERY HIGH salaries in California. heck, even prison nurses make 7500/month there! (and that's one of the lowest paying specialties in nursing!)..so you can only imagine what ER nurses make!

why should nurses be scared? we are IN DEMAND! we can get a job tomorrow, yesterday, today, ANYWHERE!!!

Would love to see the safer ratios here, so I'm in agreement with you there. But I am LAUGHING OUT LOUD at your ideas about pay !!! A SHACK in California costs about 800K, so OF COURSE THEY HAVE TO INFLATE THE SALARIES !!

You can come to Texas and buy almost a 2500 sq.foot home with hardwoods, on the golf course, 4 bedrooms and pay right around 200K and an experienced RN can pull in around 30-40.00/hour. So I'm just not going to join you in the pity party for salaries here in Texas. Not enough eyeroll icons here to even remotely make my point.

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;)I am also a member of NNOC. Looking at the history of California and what is happening to our Texas nurses raises concerns that Texas is headed down the same road. What is going to happen when our patients are calling 911 from the hospital? Look at the stats from the California ratios, they actually brought nurses back to the bedside.

Please also look at HB 1707 in the TX senate right now. It is now in the public health committee. We all need to write and call our reps to have them support this bill. Surely 150,000 RNs is more than the Texas Hospital Association and doesn't our voice and our vote mean more than a few who disagree with HB 1707.

Here's a link to the page where you can view the history and the text of the bill.

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=80R&Bill=HB1707

Send this to all of your Texas RNs and let's stand behind Sen Coleman who is already pushing for a better nursing environment which means a better patient environment and care.

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Fighting - I totally understand your frustration. Half of the problem is fear - fear of lost job and all that this entails. The other half is apathy. After many years of fighting, I can understand the apathy. I myself am so tired of fighting. I been to the rallies, I've carried signs in public. I've had ugly things said about me. I've been warned by managers that going to a union organization meeting would be grounds for termination. And I still fought. Unfortunately there just wasn't enough people to make a difference. Nurses overall in the south especially do not have the nerve or the stomach for fights like this one. I wish that I could make a living working on healthcare/nursing reform. Had I known what was going on with the nurses in Mesquite prior to their termination - I likely would have tried to help them. Unfortunately it was kept hush hush by the admin and I didn't know anything about what was going on until a patient asked if I had read the paper about what happened. I'm glad you still want to fight. But know that you have a long, arduous battle. It won't be easy. And you may not win. But I commend you for your spirit. Nurses truly do not understand that if ALL of us did what was right - they couldn't fire all of us.

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Specializes in ER, PACU, CORRECTIONAL HEALTH, FLIGHT.

i, for one, have never been fearful of losing a job. i dont know what is wrong with other nurses.........do they not realize that this nation faces a critical nursing shortage? there is a large population of baby boomer nurses who are retiring, or going part-time, getting too old or sick to work, then there are the baby boomers themselves getting old and sick and filling up hospital beds, and then we have a rising population due to immigrants and illegals. nursing schools cant spit out grads fast enough to keep up with the demand, yall! listen up! do yall not read your nursing spectrum or career builder and see how many ads there are for nurses-so many offering relocation, sign on bonuses, incentives?

ya know, if nurses stuck together like cops and firefighters do (MALE dominated professions) in solidarity, and started to DEMAND changes to advance the profession, patient safety, and whatever other issues there are, nursing overall would get alot more respect.

as a gritty ER nurse deep in the trenches working a virtual MASH unit, those sweet Johnson & Johnson commercials on nursing make me sick. to me, what those commercials depict is that nurses are there to console, give massages, and have plenty of time to hold hands. come on yall. get real. i dont know about anyone else, but i dont have time to devote to 100 percent psychosocial support-i have to incorporate that into the whole mix of dropping a tube into a GI bleeder or overdose victim, rushing to get the retavase for an acute MI with STEMI etc! first thing is to save their lives, then if i have time between that patient and another crashing patient, sure, i would be glad to smile and give my patient a gesture of caring etc...........

Fighting - I totally understand your frustration. Half of the problem is fear - fear of lost job and all that this entails. The other half is apathy. After many years of fighting, I can understand the apathy. I myself am so tired of fighting. I been to the rallies, I've carried signs in public. I've had ugly things said about me. I've been warned by managers that going to a union organization meeting would be grounds for termination. And I still fought. Unfortunately there just wasn't enough people to make a difference. Nurses overall in the south especially do not have the nerve or the stomach for fights like this one. I wish that I could make a living working on healthcare/nursing reform. Had I known what was going on with the nurses in Mesquite prior to their termination - I likely would have tried to help them. Unfortunately it was kept hush hush by the admin and I didn't know anything about what was going on until a patient asked if I had read the paper about what happened. I'm glad you still want to fight. But know that you have a long, arduous battle. It won't be easy. And you may not win. But I commend you for your spirit. Nurses truly do not understand that if ALL of us did what was right - they couldn't fire all of us.
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