Sunday, November 14, 2010

Political Action Plan..."The Follow-up"


In regards to the political action plan outlined on October 21, 2010, group members accomplished various actions. First, group members educated themselves on the candidates up for election in their state by viewing political websites, news reports, voting records, and campaigns. On November 2, 2010 group members utilized their right to vote by showing up to the polls and voting for legislators who would hopefully advocate for reversing the nursing shortage. Furthermore, other members joined the National Nurses United organization, which focuses on lobbying for national issues such as the safe staffing ratios discussed in our blog. This will benefit group members by keeping them updated on current nursing issues, providing them access to publications, and receive email updates and action alerts pertaining to this bill.
            In order to raise awareness of this bill, each group member contacted a key stakeholder or legislator. Many of us contacted RN’s that we know personally who are active in their clinical settings and influential in their communities. With this grassroots approach, the noted RN’s will be able to educate their coworkers and encourage them to also get involved in an organization that is going to lobby for this key issue. One of the steps that RN’s can do is discuss with their managers their concerns about their own safety and patient’s safety due to the current staffing ratios. From there, managers such as Leslie Schniekell, can express their concerns as well as their staff members to the attention of hospital administration. On a larger scale, the group contacted Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia who is on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to sway his opinion on current healthcare legislation and others sharing his stance.
            Our group is committed to continuous support and involvement pertaining to this issue. By advocating for Senator Boxer’s bill on the national nursing shortage, joining the National Nurses Union, and contacting Senators in opposition to this bill we’re not only addressing this issue here in Virginia, we are reaching legislators and key stakeholders on a national level.  

To hear Senator Boxer in action at the National Nurses Union rally in May 2010, check out the video posted below.

Senator Boxer at NNU Rally: National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient...

Monday, November 8, 2010

Key Stakeholders in the National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act

This week each of the blog members contacted a key stakeholder or legislator in order to invite them to take a look at our blog about the National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act.

Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia- Senator Isakson is a Republican who has been the Senator of Georgia since 2005. He is currently a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Senator Isakson voted against the health care bill passed by the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives and signed by President Obama on March 30, 2010. On his official website (see link below), Senator Isakson stated that he voted against the health care bill because he could not be a part of driving Americans to a government-run health care system that the country could not afford. Johnny Isakson was contacted, because as a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, he will be voting on the passage of the National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act. Introduced bills first go to a committee whose job is to examine and revise the bill before it goes to general debate. Because the majority of bills never make it out of committee, it is important to gain the support of members of this particular committee. In addition, if Isakson believes that we cannot afford to reform our health care system, then it is very possible that he would no support an act that will likely require hospitals to hire more nurses. (http://isakson.senate.gov/healthcare.html)

M.C., Nursing Student, Shenandoah University- The passage or non-passage of this bill will have a large impact on new nurses entering the field in the next few years. Due to the demanding nature of nursing school, it is very hard to keep up with news such as this. A simple, straightforward blog that takes just minutes to review could be a great resource for a busy nursing student who still wants to keep up with and support pro-nurse legislation.

Emilie Curcio and Claire McGraw- Emilie is a senior nursing student at Wagner College. Claire is a registered nurse who has not worked for years but is interested in getting back into nursing and finding a career again. Both of these women are prospective new nurses and while they are both at very different places in their lives, they both have the potential to get active and involved in nursing legislature. They both will also be impacted by the nursing shortage and need to be informed so that they can get involved and make things happen that they believe would be best for the nursing community. As future nurses, they play a key role in what can become of the nursing shortage as it impacts them personally.

Debbie Rose, RN- After working as a nurse for over 20 years, I believe that she is a key stakeholder in this legislation and will hopefully feel the positive effects of this bill if it is enacted. She currently is working on a same-day surgery unit but has also worked on many other units and was even a traveling nurse for many years. By being a traveling nurse she really saw first-hand the staffing needs of a hospital and the importance of maintaining a safe nurse-patient ratio. Her work day is often affected by short staffing which adds additional stress to the work environment and also can affect the time that she leaves her shift or whether or not she has time for a lunch break. Her employer will often call to see if she can come in on additional days when they are short on staff. By establishing a unit requirement of a nurse patient ratio, it is my hope that Debbie and nurses like her will have increased job satisfaction and feel that they are safely and effectively caring for their patients.

Luann Shupe- a currently practicing nurse and an employee at doctor’s office. Just within her office, she has seen the struggles of filling an open nursing position; therefore I believe she would be in favor of this bill being passed. She has expressed feeling overwhelmed from her day at work several times because the office was short-staffed while the workload remained the same or increased. As a result, she may experience burn out quicker due to the deceased availability of nurses ready to hire. Since many nurses may also be feeling overwhelmed, practicing nurses and student nurses would benefit from the passing of the National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act.

Leslie Schniekell- the manager of the Dialysis Unit at Georgetown University Hospital, and has been a practicing nurse for more than two decades. She is the constant "go to" for many fellow staff members because of her abundant involvement within the community. The nursing shortage plays an important role in her management tactics, hospital desires, and personal beliefs. It is a topic that she mentions and strives to change on a daily basis, and I think she would have a lot of input on the matter. Not to mention that she can talk about this topic for hours, and has tons of ideas about what newly practicing nurses should expect when being hired.

There have been no recent updates or actions taken by Congress with this bill. It is still in the process of being considered by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee