Right now, the focus has to be on retaining experienced nurses as long as they want to stay,” Syl Trepanier, DNP, RN, chief nursing officer at Providence, told Becker’s. “That means refreshing the work environment, making the work itself more sustainable, and creating new opportunities that keep them engaged and fulfilled.
However, less experienced nurses need better training, better work environments, more rewarding pay structures, and better benefits. Without these basic employment guarantees, there will not be enough new nurses filling the void from retiring nurses. Patient safety will begin to lapse.
My law practice focuses on the health care work place stresses, impairment investigations, and the criminal consequences on a health care license. Intoxication, drug use, and a messy home life all interact with a job or start from the bad workplace conditions. Healthcare work-related injuries may start the process. But low pay, demanding hours, uninteresting work, and challenging job related hierarchy creates the perfect storm for off duty drinking, recreation medical marijuana, and spousal entanglements.
A great health care job, strong benefits, good working conditions, nice colleagues, and good pay translate into happier professionals, less off duty partying, and less collateral consequences. Call me about your health care work place issues, investigation, or off duty criminal matters.
