Nurses are very rarely studied to improve their safety. They are expected to carry a lot of information in their practices. It is an extremely stressful job.
I would think with such a dangerous disease as Ebola there has to be a maximum safety level that can be maintained for health care workers. In particular working hours and conditions. I would expect nursing unions to consider a study whereby there is an understanding to the optimal hours worked by anyone in such an intensive setting. It might be 12 hours is far too long, 8 hours might be better or 6 hours optimal. There may be a maximum stress level of four hours that need to be maintained to protect the worker as well as the patient and ultimately the social environment health care workers live in.
Are there showers and gowning rooms immediately available to use before and after a shift? Is the pay rate for such work sufficient to permit a valuable nurse to work only four hours per day or six hours per eighteen hour period. Is there a log book to maintain tract of nurses hours to know if they are approaching the optimal care level and then are they receiving rest enough before returning to that patient care?
I think there is a lot we can do to find the most optimal environment for patient care and health care safety.
I would think with such a dangerous disease as Ebola there has to be a maximum safety level that can be maintained for health care workers. In particular working hours and conditions. I would expect nursing unions to consider a study whereby there is an understanding to the optimal hours worked by anyone in such an intensive setting. It might be 12 hours is far too long, 8 hours might be better or 6 hours optimal. There may be a maximum stress level of four hours that need to be maintained to protect the worker as well as the patient and ultimately the social environment health care workers live in.
Are there showers and gowning rooms immediately available to use before and after a shift? Is the pay rate for such work sufficient to permit a valuable nurse to work only four hours per day or six hours per eighteen hour period. Is there a log book to maintain tract of nurses hours to know if they are approaching the optimal care level and then are they receiving rest enough before returning to that patient care?
I think there is a lot we can do to find the most optimal environment for patient care and health care safety.
