Nurse / patient ratios

I was thinking again today about the nurse to patient ratios the California government is bringing in. They are at 6 now (other States have followed suit; not sure which state started this) and were hoping to move to 5:1 this month. That has apparently been put on hold, and nurses are angry. I understand the desire to have limited patient numbers. Lord knows med/surg patient care is heavier today then when I first started nursing. My question is, aside from turning away patients how are people that need hospitalization going to be cared for? There is a shortage of nurses world wide, so what do governments, and nurses, expect to happen? People will not stop getting sick. We are living longer yes, but with more and prolonged illness.
The USA, and probably Canada, has waiting lists at nursing schools. The shortage of qualified instructors seems to be a big problem. Perhaps the real problem, schools and governments want Masters prepared (and up) instructors. Sorry, but there are just not enough to go around. So are we unnecessarily causing a shortage of professionals. There are some wonderfully talented and seasoned nurses out there, with only a Diploma or BN degree, who would make wonderful teachers.
I have a strong distaste for those who see more value in a piece of paper than the person standing before them. Experience counts for not? Sometimes (I have seen) all you get is the paper...useless.

Government cuts...again

So the Ontario government is cutting nursing jobs again. Hospitals are in an awful budget crunch, as is the provincial government. In an effort (supposedly) to better meet the needs of health care consumers, they want to focus more on Public Health and prevention. I think they have done this before though; cut in one program before the other is in place. The Health Minister says no worry though, as laid off nurses will soon find other positions opening in the new focus. Don't suppose he stopped to think that many of these hospital nurses will not be qualified to fill new public health positions? No, don't suppose.

Intro to nightinglae lost

I created this blog to keep thoughts, comments and feedback from others as I reflect on my own nursing profession and the status of nurses world wide.

I am a freelance writer and hope to publish real life stories of REAL nursing. Too often it's not pretty, and it the profession is little appreciated by many.

Since Florence Nightingales time, there are days I feel nursing has made little more progress than mere handmaids of physicians. Even nurses, though registering bodies "talk the talk" sort to speak, think little of their own knowledge and abilities. We could be, we are , so much more than most realize or want to talk about.

This blog is a chance to share, freely and openly, thoughts, feeling, encounters with the nursing profession. Please be aware, I will probably use posts to this blog in my book. But also realize anonimity will be respected as much as possible. I for one am not afraid to speak, for the good or bad , about the truths of the profession, as I see and have experienced them.

It is a good profession, an honest one, and a hellishly difficult one. Nurses can be abused, ignored, misused, revered, abandoned and loved. I still recommend it as a career for men or women, but suggest any person entering do so with a strong will and an open mind.