Do you agree with the nurses strike?

[borderterrierr]

Guardian reporting that the rcn strike has resulted in a yes vote and we'll be striking before Christmas.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/nov/05/nurses-across-uk-vote-to-strike-in-first-ever-national-action?CMP=ShareiOSAppp_Other

Patient's emergency care will be protected but it's a strike vote

Yes, absolutely. And the Ambulance Service who are currently voting.

Voted but will not strike.

No change has ever come about without something drastic - everyone who isn't a Tory is with you !

No I don’t. Where will the money come from for any extra pay. This country is on its knees. There is not enough money in the Government pot

Yes, 100%. This government needs to learn they've gone way, way too far.

My ds has a serious health condition, we need the nhs to work. So yes, I do support the strike. He was recently in hospital for 3 weeks and the thought of the people looking after him working 12 hour shifts then struggling to pay rent or buy food is horrifying. And I don't think the answer is to import nurses from low income and developing countries either.

If only there were some way of getting more money in that pot. Like a windfall tax or something.

Go nurses.

I hope this improves pay and even more importantly conditions.

Yes. Support them all the way

Yes.
I'm a nurse. The going rate for a private cleaner in my area is 86p an hour less than I earn now. I've been qualified 18 years. I know I have paid holidays/sickness but still...
It's not just about pay though. My department had been understaffed for almost 3 years now. Recruitment is getting more and more difficult. The trauma of the pandemic and the fear over lack of PPE still haunts me.
I work part time so I have just set up my own cleaning business on my days off to test the water. I will likely be yet another very experienced nurse leaving the profession.

Its not just about money. Its about conditions and staffing. Nurses would be satisfied with an inline with inflation rise. The last one offered in real terms wasnt a raise as pension % were also increased along with student finance etc. theres no legal safe staffing in the uk. You could get to work on a 28 bed ward where 4 nurses is considered safe but only 2 are on and you're expected to crack on. The work load becomes impossible and you cannot offer care to those patients. Its unsafe for everyone and needs to be resolved as nurses are leaving for more money and better conditions. You need to retain the staff with decent pay AND working conditions.

Yes

I'll admit that the idea of a strike scares me. But my DD is a nurse and she's exhausted and ready to leave. She's a ward sister working 12.5 hour shifts. She should finish at 7:30pm but is frequently still there at 9:30 because she simply can't leave due to patients due to be discharged who haven't gone yet, or any kind of problem that leaves the ward unsafe if she leaves.

It's stressful, chaotic and carries huge responsibility.

Funny how there's always money for War, or MPs expenses.

As a student nurse who quit in 3rd year due to the fear of being unable to do my job safely I absolutely whole heartedly support it. Too many times I saw 2 nurses look after 24 patients, which meant no breaks because you couldn’t leave someone alone. Terrifying conditions.

😂

It should never have been allowed to come to this. 100% in support.

Our hospital has a food bank for staff. I’m behind a strike

Yes!!

I'm not behind all strikes (I don't agree with the train strikes for example) but I'm 100% behind the nurses (and any other health care professionals) they do an amazing job and conditions are unsafe at the moment, hopefully the strikes will bring about positive change.

Yes. Fully 100%.

The decision for Nurses to take Strike action is not something that is taken lightly. Especially those who are with the RCN.

Also, striking doesn't always mean a walk out.

You will find that a lot of the nurses will work to rule. For example: they will actually take the full time 1 hour UNPAID lunch break rather then just the normal 20 minutes because a patient bell is going.

They will not start early and they will not finish late.

They won't work overtime ( and this is how many nurses earn their money)

100% support

anyone who ares about patient care and the health service should support

This for me is a huge dilemma for 2 reasons.
1.I don't want my actions i.e. striking to cause any harm to the patients I care for. I wouldn't want my family/friends to come to harm because a nurse was on strike so I have to apply this principle to the patients I care for. 2. There is no extra money in the NHS to give us a higher pay award, if we get more that money will come from another area what area will that be? Everywhere is over budget.
On the other hand we need to come to speak out tell Joe Public that your NHS has collapsed because of years of underfunding and that we are not able to give the care we want to give and that this is causing nursing staff to be utterly demoralised and ultimately leave the profession (and not just nurses doctors pharmacists physios midwives etc) when you combine with years of below inflation pay rises, the hell that was covid (so many staff have never really recovered from it) and the "count your lucky stars you've got a job so we going to treat you like shit" ethos that pervades the NHS despite the fact that staff are leaving in droves and all the other crap that we have to deal with on a daily basis.
So after lots of thought I ticked yes to striking something I never thought I would do, (I'm not sure exactly what striking will look like) because the NHS cant afford to loose many more staff, and we need to stand up and let the country know what is happening.

As a nurse I’m behind it. Nurses don’t need to strike. Simply working their rostered hours, starting and finishing on time and taking their unpaid breaks should be enough to make the government realise we can’t go on like this. Too many people leaving the NHS. Not just nurses it’s everyone. If we don’t make a stand then care of patients will get worse.