Tomorrow is the start of Nurses Week, a week dedicated to celebrating all the hardworking nurses who care for our communities, and work to save lives.
As a nurse, I’ve seen firsthand just how difficult this past year has been in our health care community. Nurses and other health care workers have faced a two-front battle as they’ve fought to keep our communities safe while advocating for nurse and patient safety.
To celebrate Nurses Week, nurses from across the country will be gathering online to stand in solidarity with and honor their fallen nurse colleagues. During the event, we’ll honor and read the names of nearly 400 nurses who have lost their lives to Covid-19.
As nurses and health care workers — especially during the Covid-19 pandemic — we’ve all experienced firsthand the impact of apathetic leadership from our health care employers and elected officials.
Their failures and greed have led to hundreds of preventable nurse deaths and deaths of thousands of other health care workers, on top of the over half a million Americans who have died due to the pandemic.
But we are finally making progress towards putting a stop to this. The Biden administration just announced it’s moving forward with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration emergency temporary standard, requiring health care employers and management to provide safe workplaces for nurses and other health care and essential workers1.
If implemented, this standard would be a significant shift towards finally protecting and supporting care workers — but we can’t stop speaking out. In order to prevent more Covid-19 infections, we must continue to urge the quick review and issuance of the standard.
That’s why we must show up in large numbers: to honor and celebrate those who prioritize our communities' health and safety during the pandemic, and stand in solidarity with those who’ve risked or lost their lives to keep us safe.
We hope to see you there,
Jean Ross, RN
National Nurses United
1 - Nurses Welcome Movement on Federal Workplace Safety Standard, Urge Quick Approval as Pandemic Surges
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