In a keynote address to the HNA's annual meeting at the Hawaiian Regent hotel, Boston-based author Suzanne Gordon energized the dozens of RNs in attendance. It starts when employers want lower premiums, which means hospitals need to cut costs.
Hospitalized patients deserve excellent nurses and nursing care.
At the same time, RNs are being held accountable for what happens to their patients while relying on those with less training. This is unfair, stressful and dangerous, says Gordon. After all, doctors are present only during their rounds, while nurses are on the hospital floor around the clock. In fact, according to patient satisfaction surveys, the key indicator is the quality of nursing care received, with any other factor a distant second. WHEN the nurses filed out after Gordon's speech last Friday morning at the Hawaiian Regent, they were smiling and upbeat.