Let’s Talk New Mexico 01/13 8am: Nearly a quarter of hospitals across the country report critical staffing shortages as the omicron variant surges. New Mexico hospital officials are warning emergency rooms are overwhelmed and the situation is likely to get worse. Meanwhile many hospitals are relying on traveling nurses to fill staffing gaps, but that’s not a permanent solution. It’s the latest iteration of a pandemic that has exacerbated an existing shortage of nurses and health care workers in New Mexico. On this week’s Let’s Talk New Mexico, we’ll talk with hospital officials, advocates and nurses and we want to hear from you. Are you working in healthcare and feeling burned out? What changes do you want to see? Are you a traveling nurse? Why did you decide to go that route? Have the staffing and bed shortages meant you had trouble getting care for yourself or a loved one? Email us at LetsTalk@kunm.org, Tweet to us with the hashtag #LetsTalkNM or call in live during the show at (505) 277-5866.
Guests:
- Keith Carlson, nurse, career coach and podcast host
- Eleanor Chavez, executive director, National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees in New Mexico District 1199
- Troy Clark, president/CEO, New Mexico Hospital Association
- Gloria Doherty, nurse practitioner
- Linda Siegle, lobbyist, New Mexico Nurses Association and New Mexico Nurse Practitioner Council
Resources
NM hospitals have worst shortages of staff in US - Albuquerque Journal
Nearly a quarter of hospitals are reporting a critical staff shortage as Omicron drives a rise in Covid-19 cases - CNN
Health officials let COVID-infected staff stay on the job - Associated Press
Colorado struggles to keep hospital beds staffed as omicron sends COVID cases soaring - Colorado Sun
Traumatized and tired, nurses are quitting due to the pandemic - CNN
