"The Calm Before The Storm" Laying Nurses Off To Prepare For A Pandemic Surge
This article discusses the struggles of one hospital’s nurses going through what seems to be just the beginning of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. While many hospitals are overwhelmed, understaffed and without equipment some are laying off their nurses and cutting back their hours.
Throughout the US many hospitals are overwhelmed with the ongoing pandemic of the COVID-19 virus. They are short-staffed on nurses forcing them to work long overtime hours. Many are so overwhelmed that they are hiring travel nurses to make up for the shortage. I am currently an RN at a hospital in Minneapolis MN and am experiencing the complete opposite of this.
Social-Distancing?
I work on a floor consisting mainly of elective, emergent as well as non- emergent surgeries. A little over two weeks ago all elective surgeries were postponed and absolutely no patient visitors are allowed in the hospital. Initially they told us this decision was made to promote people to stay home (social distancing) and to conserve hospital beds, ventilators, monitors and other critical supplies that will be needed for this pandemic. This has left the hospital quiet and very empty compared to the normal chaos of the typical daily pace. Patients are anxious and feeling alone not being able to have family members with them for support. Family members are confused and scared, constantly calling to get updates on their loved ones’ condition. As nurses we are taking on a lot of stress relaying messages between doctors and families, consoling people that are sad or upset, and trying to be positive to help shed some light on this situation.
Hospitals are Unprepared
It seems as though the hospital did not know how to prepare for this type of crisis. After the first influx of patients being tested it took weeks to figure out where they would put these patients and how we would get proper protective equipment. They now have elected one of our medical floors to take all of the COVID rule-out and positive tested patients. In addition, some ICU beds have been dedicated to caring for the critically ill patients needing ventilators. You can see and hear the frustration with this decision because now all the responsibility to care for these patients is only on a select few units. They are putting themselves as well as their families at risk to be exposed to this virus. While these nurses are hard at work and in a high-stress environment, other floors have completely shut down or decreased their patient populations immensely. This includes the OR, care suites, surgical specialties, orthopedic and observation units. This last week many nurses have been called off to stay home or put on low need due to the decreased census of patients throughout the hospital. Nurses are being floated every day to sit at door entrances for hours, screening visitors trying to enter the hospital. Other nurses are teaching classes about how to put on and take off PPE equipment. Some are walking around going to every unit basically begging to find any place they can help. I have done so myself and can speak for most of the nurses that we all feel a little useless not being able to care for patients.
Financial Struggle Equals Threat of Lay-Off
This week we received notice that the hospital is struggling financially due to this pandemic. No surgeries and a major decrease in admissions mean no money coming into the system. In the next month they will be cutting back nurses’ hours, laying people off, or paying them a minimum of 50% of their FTE. The rationale for this is to conserve the hospital revenue as much as they can; all to prepare and utilize it to stock up on PPE equipment for the upcoming months when COVID numbers are expected to skyrocket.
Calm Before the Storm?
It is uneasy and hard to tell if this is truly the calm before the storm or if many nurses will have to apply for unemployment alongside a large number of other Americans. People see the news and expect all US nurses to be the ones on the front line helping patients and communities through this crisis. It is truly heartbreaking to feel that you may have to look for a new job at the end of this or could be thrown back into a completely unorganized surge of ill patients, without proper training or equipment. Nurses are full of anxiety and on edge not knowing what the future holds for us in our career. This pandemic is truly affecting everyone in a different way, causing lots of uncertainty and stress. I just hope that some clarity can be shed soon so we can properly prepare for this and try to prevent the spread of this virus to our population and healthcare workers.
Specializes in Registered nurse on a surgical specialties unit.
That seems crazy to be pushing undergrad nurses through to be on the front lines. That is unfair for them not getting a proper orientation to nursing on top of being total chaos as well as unsafe to patients.
Specializes in Registered nurse on a surgical specialties unit.
I completely agree the media is blowing this pandemic out of the water. I know that there are many hospitals struggling and their nurses would speak differently. But making everyone scared by only sharing the worst statistics it is not helpful at all either. The patients sitting in the hospital with only tv and the news to keep them busy is making them go crazy. They are so worried about what’s going on outside the hospital thinking it’s the most unsafe place they can be does not create a healing environment. Do you think the media being portrayed this way is to try to enforce people to social distance and stay home?
There is no such thing as “worse statistics” there’s only statistics. I’m no fan of the media but I’m curious to know how you think they are blowing this “out of the water”. You only have to look at the Johns Hopkins site to see the grim truth. I’m sure those of us here truly on the front line may disagree with your assessment of the situation.
There is no such thing as “worse statistics” there’s only statistics. I’m no fan of the media but I’m curious to know how you think they are blowing this “out of the water”. You only have to look at the Johns Hopkins site to see the grim truth. I’m sure those of us here truly on the front line may disagree with your assessment of the situation.
There's certainly irresponsible sharing of statistics and models, with no context given to the numbers and sensationalized language throughout. For example, my local paper breathlessly reported two days ago "grim forecasts" from the Gates Foundation stating that by April 8, we would have 25,000 people needing to be hospitalized with COVID in NYS, and "only 13,000 hospital beds will be available." As of today, April 8, we have less than 4,000 people hospitalized with COVID! Statewide! Give me an *** break. Additionally, I've seen a shift happening to obscure how underwhelming the reports of new cases and deaths are... in the beginning the news was reporting things like "5 new cases a day! 10 new cases a day!" and now are reporting new cases and deaths in percentages.... "Today, we have 75% more hospitalizations in {COUNTY} than we had 3 weeks ago." No kidding! We had 3 hospitalizations 3 weeks ago and now we have 25? STOP THE PRESSES, the apocalypse is here! Just... puh-lease. We all know that the average person consuming these panic-inducing reports isn't going to do the math or contextualize the numbers, they're just going to panic. It's irresponsible. It's the equivalent of screaming fire in a crowded movie theatre, and it should be illegal.
There's certainly irresponsible sharing of statistics and models, with no context given to the numbers and sensationalized language throughout. For example, my local paper breathlessly reported two days ago "grim forecasts" from the Gates Foundation stating that by April 8, we would have 25,000 people needing to be hospitalized with COVID in NYS, and "only 13,000 hospital beds will be available." As of today, April 8, we have less than 4,000 people hospitalized with COVID! Statewide! Give me an *** break. Additionally, I've seen a shift happening to obscure how underwhelming the reports of new cases and deaths are... in the beginning the news was reporting things like "5 new cases a day! 10 new cases a day!" and now are reporting new cases and deaths in percentages.... "Today, we have 75% more hospitalizations in {COUNTY} than we had 3 weeks ago." No kidding! We had 3 hospitalizations 3 weeks ago and now we have 25? STOP THE PRESSES, the apocalypse is here! Just... puh-lease. We all know that the average person consuming these panic-inducing reports isn't going to do the math or contextualize the numbers, they're just going to panic. It's irresponsible. It's the equivalent of screaming fire in a crowded movie theatre, and it should be illegal.
My state has had more COVID deaths in the first month of the infection than the flu has had this entire season. How is reporting that sensational or irresponsible? Have you looked at graphs of the increase happening in the U.S.? The world?
Pandemic forecasts are educated guesses. I'm certainly not going to complain if we get a better handle on it than we have so far. As the experts are saying, if our strategies to contain this work, it will feel anticlimactic. I would be very, very happy with anticlimactic numbers right now, but that's not happening. Not on a widespread level.
There's certainly irresponsible sharing of statistics and models, with no context given to the numbers and sensationalized language throughout.
They are just parroting what their local government is telling them. I live in a state that has taken a hard stance for early social distancing and the director of health is still saying that we could have up to 10k new patients a day when the surge hits. Currently the most we've had is in the mid 400s and even that has dropped. I believe they are continuing to use grim statistics because they are very much possible if people continue to disregard the orders for social distancing and stay at home.
Nurse VOLUNTEERS. My state and from what I have read here, there are several states where the governor's have put out an alert asking for nurse volunteers. These are unpaid positions, you pay to get there, get a hotel, meals and this all with the understanding that if you loose your regularjob because of this, they will not take responsibility.
It's messed up but at this point the only thing that can save a lot of rural healthcare systems is a COVID outbreak in their service area. Healthcare systems have been forced to shut down a majority of their most profitable services (ambulatory surgery, imaging, laboratory, etc) in order to preserve PPE. Had there been an adequate supply of PPE we wouldn't be experiencing this. Health systems have basically cut off their own appendages at the start of a marathon in anticipation of something that could be days, weeks, months, or may possibly never even reach their community. Ultimately, to get paid requires an inflow of cash. With a severely decreased inflow you have to make cuts. They are trying to keep the employees on staff and paid but it's becoming very hard. I absolutely can not wait for this COVID garbage to be over.
Yes, nurses who do not work on a inpatient unit, ICU or ER will likely be moved to areas of the hospital that are needed. It's unlikely many will be laid off, but I will say some nurses will either quit or go into early retirement. Some nurses are not comfortable working in areas that they are not trained in and some simply do not want to work with covid patients which is understandable because of the dangers and risk involved.
Many initial statistics were estimates of what the US could see. Social distancing, sheltering in place etc were introduced and we have seen those effects.
To simply say “look our numbers are low, let’s go back to normal” is narrow sighted and does not consider that perhaps these low numbers and lack of a surge in particular areas are all thanks to the current SIP/SD.
Been laid off close to a month and I don't miss it a bit. Thought about traveling. Applied at the local kroger and lowes, don't mind stocking shelves or running a forklift.
Ohio nursing sent out an email to build a volunteer list. Promptly deleted it. if I can't be paid, I can't help out sorry. We pay the military when they go to war but we can't pay nursing to fight this war.
Peaches are in isle 4. You need 10 bags of mulch, I'll get those down.
NurseB.MN
1 Article; 6 Posts
That seems crazy to be pushing undergrad nurses through to be on the front lines. That is unfair for them not getting a proper orientation to nursing on top of being total chaos as well as unsafe to patients.