[Rania Qaqish]

There has always been a shortage of nurses, this pandemic definitely made that problem even worse. Yes, we were running out of space and ventilators, but the shortage of nurses is nothing new. But this video was right, we cannot fix that problem with ventilators. I used to work in the medical ICU and I can tell you first hand that a lot goes into taking care of critical patients. I did not work in the ICU during COVID, but I commend the nurses that did. I am definitely open to the idea of using medical assistants as efficiently as possible. I also definitely agree physicians should be more familiar with nursing tasks, most physicians don’t know how to start an IV or even prime and connect a bolus to that IV. No one should be above any type of work, we need to foster a relationship and teamwork with healthcare professionals. These times are hard for everyone in the medical field, I do feel like nurses deserve more recognition for all that they do.

[Rania Qaqish]

Hi Avery, I am glad you brought this up because I definitely deal with this issue when talking to my peers about pursuing my DNP. I feel like the response is typically negative from people that work in healthcare. My family and friends are very supportive and excited for me. However, when speaking with other nurses they usually have a negative response about pursuing my DNP. I definitely think there’s a way to go with the profession of nursing receiving the respect and credit it deserves. This can be done by educating our peers and patients about the role of DNPs and their educational background. I also believe that too many nurses are burdened with school loans. It’s actually sad that a profession that gives back to its community and is so selfless, requires their nurses to be stressed with a ridiculous amount of loans. I have also learned to cope with negative opinions and focus on my goals and positive thoughts. We need more well prepared APRN’s for this overwhelmed healthcare system. My hope is that over the next few years APRNs will be valued and utilized effectively.

[Rania Qaqish]

Thank you for posting this topic by Mark Lawrence Schrad. It is definitely nice to read this after what healthcare professionals have been through during the past two years of this pandemic. I am an emergency room registered nurse and have worked in the ER during this whole pandemic. Working in the ER meant we were the frontline and protection of the rest of the hospital. During a time when so many people were even scared to leave their home, we came to work and dealt with the unknown. During the beginning of the pandemic our lobby was empty, everyone was too scared to come. However, right after the holidays of 2020, we got our first bad surge in California. I would send most patients up to the ICU maxed out on high-flow nasal cannula and with a 15L nonrebreather on top. It didn’t occur to me that most of those patients did not survive. It wasn’t until I lost my father in law to COVID in September of 2021 that I realized how deadly and devastating this disease was. Overall, this disease changed my personal and work life dramatically. All along this journey, some patients called COVID a hoax, others refused to wear masks. Everyone loved their “health care heroes” in the beginning and that slowly died down. It’s nice to see this post and recognition. I definitely agree we deserve all the benefits of the military. Unfortunately, I am not sure we will ever see the appreciation and compensation we deserve. As for the takeaway for DNP colleagues, this pandemic showed the growing need of DNP educated healthcare providers for an overwhelmed healthcare system. APRN’s can play a vital role in providing healthcare services to different patient populations. I appreciate everyone in healthcare and hope you guys have found some peace during this time of chaos!

• This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Rania Qaqish.

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