Health care workers face serious problems. Lack of courtesy is not one of them | Opinion
Dear Mr. George Korda:
My name is Emily and I have been a bedside registered nurse since I graduated nursing school in 2016. I've worked in multiple hospitals in both California and our beloved Tennessee. I was deeply saddened and discouraged by your guest column titled "Lack of courtesy from health care workers hurts them – and costs money."
This column was shared at our nursing station and caused my colleagues and me to feel very put down during a difficult time for health care workers. I assume you are aware there is an extreme shortage of staff. The workload is rigorous, meaning as an RN I walk onto the floor and have up to 12 acutely sick patients to care for. It is not uncommon for five or six patients to need something all at once. We are responsible, along with our licensed practical nurses, for passing out up to hundreds of medications a day; completing head-to-toe assessments; caring for wounds, lines and drains; and toileting and changing people – on top of keeping family members up to date. Of course, we work closely with the doctors to carry out their orders and relay information. Not to mention, we could not do this job successfully without the efforts of nurses' aides and secretaries.
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I am not alone in saying that I put my health behind everyone else's. We go hours without going to the bathroom or eating and drinking. I go home so exhausted after being clocked in for 13 hours that I can't even talk to my husband. And sadly, I am relieved my children are already in bed because I wouldn't be a very good mother after work.
Taking care of very sick people comes at the expense of my health, my mental well-being and my family's. And I am absolutely not the exception. Nurses put their hearts and souls into this job. It takes every ounce of our energy (and then some) to take care of patients all day.
I'm sorry you had a few bad experiences where you weren't addressed properly or didn't hear "please" and "thank you," but I urge you to educate yourself on the true problems that health care is facing today. For you to write an op-ed belittling those who care for patients, and blaming them for costly problems, is insulting. What was your intention with this piece? Frankly, it is hurtful to those of us who sacrifice more than we should be asked to.
With all good intentions,
Emily Peterson, RN, BSN
Emily Peterson has been a medical-surgical and telemetry RN for seven years. She lives in Cumberland County with her husband and two sons. This guest column is solely her opinion and does not reflect her current workplace.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Opinion: Lack of courtesy isn't one of the problems with health care
