Nursing Shortage

* Re “Dropout, Failure Rates Soar in Nursing Schools,” Nov. 23:

Licensed (RNs, LVNs) home-care nurses in Los Angeles have not had a raise in hourly rates in over nine years, and since January 1998, thanks to our myopic state Legislature, we have, along with other hourly personnel, been denied overtime pay for daily shifts totaling more than eight hours. Hospital-based nurses have their own disheartening stories to tell.

Since very few of my fellow nurses would recommend our disappointing profession to first-year college students, those dropping out from nursing programs for any reason are not as unfortunate as they may think. Those of us who have worked as nurses for decades are more likely to love our profession than not. Still, more of us now are seeing the need to recommend to prospective nursing students that a very careful study of this kind of work be made, outside of what instructors and recruiters are willing to provide.

BRIAN LANE RN

Montrose

* This is a long-overdue subject that the public must be made aware of. There are just not enough registered nurses willing to work in acute-care hospitals in California. No wonder; being so frequently short-staffed means working harder than ever and even putting their license and patients at risk.

If the education of new, competent RNs is not addressed, and regardless of how many laws are passed on patient/nurse ratios, the RN shortage in our hospitals will reach crisis proportions.

BIRUTE PRASAUSKAS RN

Lomita

* In the interest of “equal access” and racial/ethnic diversity, California community colleges have compromised the health and safety of consumers and are hastening the transition of nursing from a demanding and rewarding profession to a second-rate trade.

Patients requiring hospitalization today have medical conditions that are more complex, and their care is more technology-dependent than ever before. While I fully acknowledge that academic achievement and raw intellectual ability are not the sole attributes of a successful nurse, they are essential components. A good nurse has a combination of clinical expertise, critical thinking/decision-making skills and a caring attitude.

If indeed the California community college system cannot admit potential nursing candidates based on academic performance (as is the standard for other professions), the education of registered nurses does not belong in that setting.

JULIE HERDA RN

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner

Children’s Hospital, Orange County