While looking around on Youtube I came across this video; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0jJWyuQ4w8 As essential workers nurses are unappreciated yet they also have some leverage to force necessary improvements within hospital/healthcare systems. In New York they are expected to cover way more patients than is safe. In addition, the mayor has mandated that EMS can forcibly transport psych patients to local emergency rooms, further burdening the system without enough manpower to serve them. While this is happening in New York City, it is happening in many states and cities in the US.

This situation got me thinking about what may have contributed to Emory’s mistreatment of me and other patients. I remember that several nurses towards the end of my getting my services there told me they didn’t feel administration listened to them, and many more have posted on Glass Door that Emory has become all about money and not about patient care.

The system as it exists creates an unfair and unsafe hierarchy that resembles a pyramid scheme. Its buying up of other hospitals in recent years is really a violation of anti-trust laws, something that citizens; patients and employees alike, should be very concerned about. Competition is important in maintaining quality standards and when any corporation establishes itself as “the only game in town” by buying up its competitors and keeping remaining ones dependent upon it for certain facilities there is the increased risk for corruption to proliferate.

I wonder what the environment is at Emory for nurses 7 years after what happened to me? My guess is that it’s gotten worse. Georgia being a “right-to-work” state makes it that much harder for nurses to feel empowered to ask for what they need and to buck a system that is exploiting them. As Andrea states; legislation and political action must take place in order to change what has become a toxic workplace environment. People must make the commitment to make improvements implemented.

It is encouraging that nurses are beginning to push back through their unions, (something I’d encouraged them to do at Emory when administration was using them to turn me away at a critical time in my diagnostic process). Better late than never, perhaps things had to reach critical mass before people became uncomfortable enough with the way things are to be moved to action.

I wish doctors would have the courage to do the same! If you are a doctor reading this please realize that no retirement pension is worth making a deal with the devil and allowing a huge healthcare corporation to create a split between you and your patients. You and your patients are really on the same side. Don’t let that corporation you work for use you to hurt patients and do them a disservice.

To all healthcare professionals; If you have a union, utilize it not only for your benefit but for better care for patients, and if those in charge are cow-towing to the corporation, elect new ones. There is strength in numbers. As Senator Raphael Warnock said; Get up, put your shoes on!” No goal was ever achieved by lying down and accepting less.