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Nurses are the experts on patient care

Re: New nursing model a win-win situation (Letters, Feb 12)

Re: New nursing model a win-win situation (Letters, Feb 12)

I find Diana Dampsy’s letter about the proposed nursing model an oversimplification of an important issue. I am not a nurse, nor do I work with or know any nurses. Rather, I base my comments on the last time I needed the expertise of a nurse, which was a few years ago when my father had emergency surgery after his small intestine was ruptured in an accident.

It was the nurses who provided the link between my father and his doctor, who despite me being at the hospital for a minimum of 12 hours per day for the six days he was in acute care, I never met.

The nurses knew how his pain levels were during the night, what he ate, when he went to the washroom, his mobility, his moods, his medications, complications in the healing of his wound and what the doctor was planning for his care.

It was the nurses who figured out that a medication was causing his post-operation vomiting, and went to the doctor, who agreed to change his medication. Within 24 hours my dad was out of bed making a speedy recovery.

It was the nurses who coached us through setting things up properly at home for his continued recovery. And frankly, if it weren’t for the nurses, I would have deemed his care substandard and felt that I could not leave his bedside to go home and sleep and do basic self-care.

If we can’t trust the nurses to properly represent patient care in this matter, how can we trust the government is making the right decision?

Nicole Makin

Victoria