Discuss 'Amid nursing shortage....' here

4 posts · started Feb 16, 2009

roger e Feb 18, 2009, 1:13 AM
Hi;
Although I am not a Nurse I am a patient around Nurses 3-4 times per week for 4-5 hours each visit. I have the same dedicated Nurses that take care of me.

They are awesome. I have a rare genetic disease called DiGeorge Syndrome. I need Calcium Gluconate by Infusion.

I enjoy going into the hospital infusion center to see my team of Nurses and getting my treatment.

I shared this news story with my care team and they were somewhat disagreeing in some respects.

The hospital I am treated at does not have a shortage of nurses so they are well staffed.

I guess it would depend on whether the Nurses personal experiences with patients was at a public or private hospital or in a rural or urban setting.

In my case, I go to a private Health One hospital in a large Urban City in the West.

In fact one of my nurses won the prestigous Nightingale Nursing Award.

Maybe the Nursing shortage can be solved if Nurses "Specialize" such as in the "Infusion Center" or "Dialysis Center", etc.

From a patient perspective I disagree with a hospital placing a "Newly Minted" Nurse into the Emergency Room Department. I believe that is the heighth of "Irresponsibility" on the hospital administrations part. It raises serious patient safetey concerns and legal issues with respect to proper patient care.

Sincerely,

Roger E (Patient)