Are you overworked? Working double 12 hour shifts? COVID got you working 2 years of overtime? What are you doing, or your unit, to ensure nurses and doctors are well rested and prepared for their shifts? Or what could be done to improve work place conditions? Looking to hear from those who've tried some new things and have found success (or failures ..read more

It would appear that although ER nurses perform their duties seamlessly despite dealing with critical injuries in patients, this type of high level stress has impacts beyond the ER. A Master of Nursing student from the University of Calgary suggests that the work environment is not only stressful, but could have devastating consequences. Your thoughts on the short and long term damage on ..read more

How many of you care for patients in the ER who shouldn't really be there? At worst we're talking about psychiatric patients who sit in the ER and pose a physical threat to nurses. At best it is a drain on resources and impacts overall healthcare for those who really need it. Appropriate protocols and policies to streamline healthcare provision and ensure the right care is given to the needs of ..read more

There was a time when nursing shoes were a distinct white flat. Before that, a distinct white mid-low heels. Crocs may be comfortable but who wants an open toe anyways? What shoe do you use at work? The popular choice is of course the day long sneaker. The choice of footwear is important since you're on your feet all day (plus it saves your back). Choices? Styles? Price points? What's your ..read more

In the hardest hit regions of COVID-19, mostly due to bad public health policies, redeployment of nursing staff is one tool to staff ICUs. ER nurses are often the first to moved. But the skills aren't interchangeable. Each discipline has very specific competencies. Care suffers when different disciplines need to extend themselves. Here's another thread on the subject. Nurse redeployment & ICU ..read more

As the slow incremental reforms in the American healthcare system amble forward, within the change lies great opportunity. In seeking to avert the collision course of an aging chronically ill population with a financial burden to maintain the current system, policy makers have had to reflect and discover a hitherto unrealized fact: nurses are the backbone of the health care system. This is both ..read more

Let's ignore the minute healthcare practitioners who believe the conspiracy hype that vaccinations aren't to be trusted. The vast majority of frontline healthcare workers are receiving a reprieve, or perhaps just a little hope, with the Moderna and Phizer vaccines. Both require two doses and in most jurisdictions appear to be given to health providers first. That's great news. But the tide ..read more

Is the work of a nurse supposed to be "above and beyond?" COVID has certainly shifted our expectations. There is more work to do as risk and critical care accommodates the massive influx and changes COVID-19 has brought. It means a lot more attention on frontline healthcare providers. Some of the narrative celebrating these workers include acknowledging the work--those who go "above and beyond ..read more

https://www.thestate.com/news/coronavirus/article243599457.html Have you found rhythm in your daily work routines amidst COVID craziness? You do what you have to do to cope. But note, this is trauma. Inundated ER rooms look like war zones, and with government officials doing little to curb the rapid acceleration of the virus, we can expect it to get worse. This is trauma for healthcare providers ..read more

You know things are bad when the federal response is completely missing, and you have to blame state governors for the mess. Stay safe out there. Your work is crazy. it's ok to feel the grief and anxiety of this time. Other countries responded quickly and aggressively to combat the spread of coronavirus.Trump failed to do the same—and now the U.S. has the most cases in the world ..read more