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News Articles: nurse shortage

Tim Lillard at the home he and his late wife, Ann Picha-Lillard, shared in suburban southeast Michigan. Since her death in 2022, Lillard has made it his mission to pass the Safe Patient Care Act, which would create mandatory nurse-to-patient ratios in Michigan hospitals.

After his wife died, he joined nurses to push for new staffing rules in hospitals

Nurses have been telling lawmakers that hospital understaffing is putting patient lives at risk. They want Michigan to follow California and Oregon and institute mandatory staffing ratios.

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By:
  • Kate Wells
Nurses hold signs outside Manhattan's Mount Sinai Hospital on Monday, the first day of their strike.

NYC nurses are on strike, but the problems they face are seen nationwide

Thousands of nurses at two New York hospitals are on strike for a third day. Their staffing shortages and other problems predate the pandemic, says the president of the American Nurses Association.

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By:
  • Rachel Treisman
Hospitals around the U.S., including large academic medical centers like Vanderbilt University's in Nashville, Tenn., have been forced to rely on traveling nurses to keep their intensive care units fully staffed. The demand for travel nurses has driven up their hourly rates, which then motivates more staff nurses to leave in pursuit of a traveling gig.

Worn-out nurses hit the road for better pay, stressing hospital budgets — and morale

In areas overwhelmed by COVID cases, hospitals must rely on traveling nurses to operate ICUs. Hospitals pay a premium for that temporary help, while also struggling to keep their staff nurses happy.

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By:
  • Blake Farmer