Avoiding apathy is not a new struggle in health care or any field. But as president-elect of the Association of California Nurse Leaders, Stephanie Ruh, MN, RN, worries that bigger workloads, sicker patients, and shortened hospital stays may challenge even the most dedicated nurse. It s amazing the amount of information that you have to hold in your head at one time of things that need to be done right now. Neither ideals nor frustrations are necessarily counterproductive, she said.
Frustration can sometimes be a tremendous motivator for creativity.
But nurses can become apathetic when they offer creative solutions and hit an institutional wall. Then what they do to try to save themselves is they get technically proficient. They want to mind the lines and mind the ventilator. If the patient is comatose, that s fine with them. She believes that nurses are finding outlets for their frustrations, such as writing letters or attending a county board of supervisors meeting.