Russell County Hospital Director of Nursing Judy Withers said she’s been sounding the alarm for more than a year now and her fears of a critical nursing shortage are starting to materialize.
Withers said she has recently lost a couple nurses with a couple more planned departures, and due to the shortage, other nurses have picked up shifts and are running the risk of burnout.
Withers made an appeal to the board of directors at Tuesday night’s board meeting, noting that other hospitals are offering perks such as $10,000 sign-on bonuses, as much as $10/hour more in pay, and paying off student loans or auto loans.
The most critical need is for emergency room nurses, Withers told the board, and the need is quite critical.
“Would you say we are in a crisis?” Board member Daryl Hammond asked Withers.
“Absolutely, yes,” Withers said.
Withers said over the next six weeks, 50 shifts still need to be covered.
Dr. Rick Miles, Chief Medical Officer for RCH, said a lot of hospitals are flush with COVID relief funds, which are being used for attractive recruiting perks.
“There’s a real shortage of nurses in this state,” Miles told the board. “And some of the bigger hospitals just have deeper pockets.”
And while Miles said things will change when there is less COVID relief money for hospitals, he noted it’s important RCH do something in the short-term.
“We have to do something in the short run,” Miles said. “We can’t have a hospital if we don’t have nurses.”
Withers will return to the board at a special-called meeting this evening at 4 p.m. to present a proposal on nurse retention and recruitment.
