{"id":621614,"date":"2024-05-23T20:33:46","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T17:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/big-idea-protect-nurses-in-the-workplace\/"},"modified":"2024-05-23T20:33:46","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T17:33:46","slug":"big-idea-protect-nurses-in-the-workplace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/big-idea-protect-nurses-in-the-workplace\/","title":{"rendered":"#Big Idea: Protect Nurses in the Workplace"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a40701315cff\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a40701315cff\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/big-idea-protect-nurses-in-the-workplace\/#Get_the_Best_of_Macleans_straight_to_your_inbox\" >Get the Best of Maclean\u2019s straight to your inbox.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"wp-block \">\n<div class=\"ad-free-zone\">\n<div class=\" mx-auto max-w-full w-full -mt-20 laptop:mt-0 laptop:pt-20 max-w-[600px] laptop:max-w-[945px]\">\n<div class=\" max-w-full aspect-[945_\/_630] laptop:h-[630px]\"><img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"1000\" height=\"700\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"w-full h-full object-cover\" style=\"color:transparent\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 945px\" srcset=\"\/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=640&amp;q=75 640w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=750&amp;q=75 750w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=828&amp;q=75 828w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=1080&amp;q=75 1080w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=1200&amp;q=75 1200w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=1920&amp;q=75 1920w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=2048&amp;q=75 2048w, \/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=3840&amp;q=75 3840w\" src=\"https:\/\/macleans.ca\/_next\/image\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.macleans.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F05%2FBIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg&amp;w=3840&amp;q=75\"\/><\/div>\n<p>Sara Fung has been a registered nurse since 2007. These days, she also co-hosts the wildly popular podcast,\u00a0&lt;em&gt;The Gritty Nurse&lt;\/em&gt;.<span class=\"all-small-caps text-grey\"> <!-- -->photo illustration by maclean\u2019s<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-[640px] laptop:max-w-[600px] mx-auto px-20 laptop:px-0 py-20 laptop:py-20\">\n<div class=\"text-smm leading-smm laptop:leading-smxl font-sans laptop:text-base text-grey font-lightmedium\">Nurses regularly face physical and emotional abuse on the job. An employment protection called presumptive care would give them the support they so desperately need.\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"author\">BY SARA FUNG<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-[640px] mx-auto py-20 px-20\">\n<div class=\"mb-8 flex gap-6\">\n<div class=\"relative inline-block\"><button aria-label=\"Sharing Button\" class=\"rounded-xl border border-grey-light px-12 py-6 hover:bg-grey-lighter transition-colors\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" fill=\"none\"><g clip-path=\"url(#share_svg__a)\"><path stroke=\"#121212\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" d=\"M2.419 15.525c1.286-1.37 4.661-4.275 9.458-4.275V15l6.25-6.25-6.25-6.25v3.75c-4.125 0-9.413 3.941-10 9.027a.313.313 0 0 0 .542.248\"\/><\/g><defs><clippath id=\"share_svg__a\"><path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M0 0h20v20H0z\"\/><\/clippath><\/defs><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"fixed laptop:absolute max-laptop:bottom-0 laptop:top-[calc(100%+20px)] left-0 right-0 laptop:right-auto w-full laptop:w-[190px] p-20 rounded-lg bg-white font-sans shadow-[0px_0px_10px_rgba(0,0,0,0.15)] invisible\">\n<ul class=\"list-none p-0\">\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>Copy Link<\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>Email<\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span><a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a><\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>X<\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>LinkedIn<\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>Whats<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">App<\/a><\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<li class=\"border-b border-b-grey-light text-dark last:border-b-0 group\"><button class=\"flex items-center gap-10 py-7 group-last:pb-0 w-full font-light group\"><span>Reddit<\/span><\/button><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"uppercase text-xs leading-normal font-sans text-grey font-lightmedium\">May 23, 2024<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap     undefined\"><strong>I became a registered nurse<\/strong> in 2007. I\u2019ve held many jobs since then\u2014in prenatal education, women\u2019s health and in various leadership roles\u2014but I got my start in the postpartum unit. In those early years, I spent much of my time at my patients\u2019 bedsides administering medications, checking wounds, drawing blood and otherwise attending to the needs of moms and babies. By 2016, I was a clinical nurse specialist working on staff education within the Greater Toronto Area, which is where I met Amie Archibald-Varley, another nurse. Our friendship really grew after we started exchanging horror stories.<\/p>\n<p>Amie and I had both been bullied during our careers. In my case, a co-worker ridiculed me in front of our colleagues when I couldn\u2019t handle a heavy workload and made hurtful comments about my appearance\u2014including a rash I\u2019d developed from anxiety. For a while, I struggled with insomnia. It was actually Amie who suggested I go on stress leave, which I didn\u2019t even realize was an option; I\u2019d never met another nurse who\u2019d taken one. My doctor provided me with a note that said I needed time off, but because it didn\u2019t include an official diagnosis, my employer didn\u2019t approve it. I took my concerns to human resources, but nothing happened. No one was listening.<\/p>\n<p>In 2019, Amie and I decided to create an outlet where we could talk openly about what it\u2019s <em>really<\/em> like to be a nurse\u2014the unsustainable caseloads, the unsafe working conditions, the harassment from patients and employers. All of it. That\u2019s how <em>The Gritty Nurse<\/em> podcast was born. At first, we were producing it for our fellow nurses, but our audience has since grown well beyond health care professionals. Every day, people tell me they had <em>no idea<\/em> what nurses faced on the job. Amie and I advocate for ways that the profession can better protect them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"     undefined\">Even before COVID, roughly 32,000 nursing positions in Ontario were vacant; nationally, that number is expected to grow to nearly 120,000 by 2030. This staff shortage has contributed to the record-breaking hospital wait times we\u2019ve all heard about. Typically, the conversation about nurse retention focuses on money, or specific wage-suppressing legislation, like Ontario\u2019s long-overturned Bill 124. Low pay for long hours is one tangible example of why my colleagues feel underappreciated, but the issues go much deeper than that. Nurses regularly contend with physical and emotional abuse during work hours. In fact, according to the International Council of Nurses, health care workers are more likely to be attacked at work than prison guards and police officers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"     undefined\">These stories may seem like outliers, but they occur in all kinds of health care settings: at hospitals, in long-term care centres and during home visits. Eavesdrop on any nursing break room and you\u2019ll hear some terrifying tales. One nurse told me about a time when she was attacked by a patient with dementia\u2014anger can sometimes come along with the disease process\u2014and a door locked behind her. When she escaped, the first thing management said to her was, \u201cWhat could you have done differently?\u201d<em> <\/em>Another nurse recently told me she kept an aggressive patient calm by placating him with cheeseburgers, bought with her own money. Eventually, the patient\u2019s doctors started wondering why he was gaining so much weight. Another nurse was accosted by a patient and slapped him in self-defense. At the time, her management said, <em>Don\u2019t worry, we\u2019ll protect you.<\/em> The next day, she got a call saying she\u2019d been let go, without a chance to tell her side of the story. She\u2019s been out of work for months.<\/p>\n<p>During violence-prevention training, when we do receive it, nurses are typically instructed not to fight back. At the start of home visits, we\u2019re told, look for an exit path. In hospitals, call a \u201ccode white,\u201d curl up in a ball and wait for security\u2014or for the abuse to end. Refusing care to a patient is against our professional obligations\u2014nursing colleges call this \u201cpatient abandonment\u201d\u2014which means that, in many cases, nurses are forced to continue attending to someone who has assaulted them. Nurses also bear the legal responsibility for their patient\u2019s safety, and we can lose our licence if anything goes wrong. Our employers are not accountable to us in the same way, particularly in situations where our mental health is at risk.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"     undefined\">Instead of funnelling money and resources into recruiting international nurses, provincial governments can take concrete steps to protect (and, therefore, retain) nurses here at home. One solution is to cover all Canadian nurses under presumptive care legislation, which mandates employers to accept disease or disorder claims from workers <em>without<\/em> requiring them to prove their condition directly resulted from their job. In many provinces, presumptive care already applies to emergency workers like paramedics, firefighters and police officers. In plenty of jurisdictions, however, nurses are not considered \u201cpublic safety officers\u201d under law, which means they aren\u2019t afforded the same overall protection, despite enduring the same kinds of abuse as other PSOs\u2014and, sometimes, at higher rates.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"     undefined\">Say a nurse was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. With presumptive care in effect, at the first sign of symptoms, they would be able to seek help from their employer. In an ideal world, that would include paid time off, a detailed, employer-provided care plan, or perhaps a visit to an on-site clinic dedicated to treating and preventing workplace injuries. The affected nurse would also be given access to outside psychological supports (i.e. from a therapist or a peer-support group). Right now, nurses have to jump through so many hoops to prove their plights, often losing pay due to time spent at diagnostic appointments. Presumptive care would alleviate this extra burden.<\/p>\n<p>The push to make presumptive care more widespread is slow, but it is happening. This past January, a bill came into effect in Washington State that increased nurses\u2019 access to workers compensation benefits and recognized repeated exposure to traumatic events as an \u201coccupational disease.\u201d Out west, the United Nurses of Alberta is pushing to expand presumptive coverage for psychological injuries. A petition created by Local 68 union president (and ER nurse) Heather Murray garnered almost 1,000 signatures before it was tabled for consideration in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta last November.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve heard from some employers in Canadian health care who are worried that nurses will take advantage of presumptive care if it\u2019s enacted. In my experience, nurses are the kinds of employees who show up no matter what they\u2019re dealing with, illness or otherwise. Every day, we put our lives on the line to care for others, but we are notoriously bad at asking for help for ourselves. It\u2019s a struggle to get us to speak publicly about the bad parts of the job, but it\u2019s crucial that we do. In June of 2020, a study by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions found that one in three Canadian nurses reported having suicidal thoughts, a rate higher than the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a> population and comparable to those of correctional workers and paramedics. (Notably, the data was collected in 2019, before the start of the pandemic.) Just recently, I spoke to a nurse who said she worked on a unit with five colleagues who died by suicide. She had to perform a post-mortem examination on one of them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block wp-block-core\">\n<p class=\"    endstyle undefined\">We cannot continue to perpetuate a situation where nurses are abused, offered no support and simply forced to cope because they need their pension or want to keep their seniority or have 10 sick patients on their roster who need them. I know this from my own painful experience of having to navigate the system by myself. Providing better care to patients <em>also <\/em>requires taking care of workers first. Presumptive care would provide support without nurses having to ask for it; simply knowing it\u2019s there in an emergency will provide some relief. As with any other issue in health care, prevention is key.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block \">\n<div class=\"ad-free-zone laptop:px-0\">\n<div class=\"max-w-screen-desktop mx-auto px-20 tablet:px-40\">\n<div class=\"wp-newsletter-signup max-w-screen-desktop mx-auto w-full py-20 my-20 tablet:my-40 tablet:py-80&#10;          border-t-3 tablet:border-t-[6px] border-dark bg-white\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col tablet:flex-row max-w-[800px] w-full mx-auto tablet:items-center\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col tablet:w-7\/12 space-y-10 text-center tablet:text-left px-20\">\n<h2 class=\"text-red\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Get_the_Best_of_Macleans_straight_to_your_inbox\"><\/span>Get the Best of <em>Maclean\u2019s<\/em> straight to your inbox.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"newsletter-subtitle font-sans text-sm leading-xm tablet:leading-smm font-lightmedium text-grey\">Sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a>, commentary, analysis and promotions. Join 80,000+ Canadian readers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more News articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/macleans.ca\/society\/health\/big-idea-protect-nurses-in-the-workplace\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sara Fung has been a registered nurse since 2007. These days, she also co-hosts the wildly popular podcast,\u00a0&lt;em&gt;The Gritty Nurse&lt;\/em&gt;. photo illustration by maclean\u2019s Nurses regularly face physical and emotional abuse on the job. An employment protection called presumptive care would give them the support they so desperately need. BY SARA FUNG Copy Link Email&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":621615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cms.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/BIG-IDEA_PROTECT-NURSES_SARA-FUNG_PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION-BY-MACLEANS.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-621614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/621614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=621614"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/621614\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/621615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=621614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=621614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=621614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}