Concerning the California governor's announcement discussed here recently:
The nurse-to-patient staffing minimums won by the California Nurses Association constitute a reform victory for patients and nurses. They give bedside nurses a tool to fight terrible situations of overwork and impossible-to-meet responsibility. CNA points out that lots of nursing labor is available. Nurses have been running away from acute care hospitals because of the horrible working conditions. A year or so ago, Victoria, Australia adopted staffing minimums and quickly expanded the number of nurses in hospitals by 13%. Also, a high percentage of nurses work part-time, and as working conditions improve, some of them will add a few hours per week. I agree with the comments by Phillips and Walker that the U.S. should put more resources into nursing education rather than rely on Canada, England, the Philippines, etc. to do it. See the CNA Web site for more details. http://www.calnurse.org Charles Andrews Web site for my book is at http://www.laborrepublic.org
