What do you think ....

1 ....is the major challenges facing the nursing profession today
We need to learn how to be a better profession without implementing nonsense. We don't need to add pain as a "vital sign" or create bunch of tongue-twisting nursing "diagnoses" to be a profession. We need to elevate our own standards to 4 year degrees, resist being replaced by cheap, imported, labor, and conduct more life-saving research such as when we figured out that oral care of vented patients prevents pneumonia. If we do this, respect will follow.

The tons of redundant paperwork created by administration who has no idea that we must take precious and countless hours to chart the same thing in 5 places in order to satisfy "the powers that be." Streamlined charting would enable us as nurses to focus on the patient instead of checking endless boxes on care plans and flow charts.

oh i could write a book on this one!!

Or a paper.

Purposely understaffing to boost profit.

Major challenges are understaffing and horrific abuse of staff by management who require us to constantly work an extra shift virtually every day due to call-ins and chronic low staffing. Staff have no rights in our hospital; we can be "mandated" to work an extra 8-hr shift 4 of the 5 days of our work-week. One of these days someone will die on the way home from exhaustion and a family member will file a lawsuit. Only then will things perhaps change.

Try reading "Nursing Against the Odds". It's lengthy but worthwhile.

What points do you have so far on your rough draft? We'll be happy to discuss.

So far, I've noted nursing shortage as a major issue since overworked nurses increases the likelihood of fatal mistakes being made. But I kinda feel like everyone is going to write on this topic so I'm looking for something else to write on.

What other challenges have you read abt/heard/seen? What things that aren't as they should be have you already experienced and how might that influence nursing?

Quote from Midwest4meMajor challenges are understaffing and horrific abuse of staff by management who require us to constantly work an extra shift virtually every day due to call-ins and chronic low staffing. Staff have no rights in our hospital; we can be "mandated" to work an extra 8-hr shift 4 of the 5 days of our work-week. One of these days someone will die on the way home from exhaustion and a family member will file a lawsuit. Only then will things perhaps change.

Lazy nurses :P