When I started nursing at 21 we were able to deliver timely, good care. That has become nearly impossible
Sophie (not her real name) is a member of the Royal College of Nursing and a senior A&E nurse in a hospital in the south of England
I began my career as an A&E nurse in 2010, when I was 21. It was a completely different world. If a patient needed immediate attention, there was easily the capacity for two nurses to look after them straight away. The NHS target of seeing patients within a four-hour window wasn’t something we gave much thought to, as it was pretty much a given that a patient would be admitted, transferred or discharged within that time. I don’t ever recall seeing a patient and feeling awful about how long they had waited.
It’s amazing to think how common it used to be for emergency departments to be almost empty at times in the evenings. As well as being much needed respite from the demands of the job, it was also a valuable time to learn from more senior colleagues. Nurses with decades of experience would take new recruits under their wings and help us practise our skills. That time is when I learned to plaster limbs and dress wounds. I wish I could do the same for my junior colleagues now. We used to be able to give timely, good care – now it has become near impossible.
Sophie (not her real name) is a member of the Royal College of Nursing and a senior A&E nurse in a hospital in the south of England
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
Continue reading...