LETTERS: NURSES WEEK IS CALL TO ACTION ON STAFFING ISSUES

To the editor:

As we celebrate National Nurses Week May 6-12, the American Nurses Association and the Missouri Nurses Association salute registered nurses across the country. This year's theme, "Nurses are the True Spirit of Caring," reflects the many ways in which nurses have consistently advocated for and delivered quality care to patients despite the challenges of a turbulent health care system.

National Nurses Week is a call to action with regard to nurses' working conditions, particularly as they relate to nurse staffing issues and the effect on quality patient care. The Missouri Nurses Association is asking nurses across Missouri to join in pushing the call button over the nation's nurse staffing crisis. ANA and MONA have been sounding the alarm over inadequate staffing practices and an emerging nursing shortage that is expected to worsen over the next decade. MONA has begun to address these concerns through legislation passed in 2000, which addressed staffing and whistle-blowing protection for nurses. A governor-appointed committee will develop recommendations related to improving the quality of patient care and ensuring the safe and efficient employment of licensed nurses in hospitals and ambulatory-care centers.

As we celebrate and recognize our nursing colleagues, I would like to extend my appreciation for nurses' commitment to the "True Spirit of Nursing." In addition, I would like to thank the public for acknowledging that nurses are the most respected of the health professions. Join me in thanking a nurse for being there and caring.

DESMA RENO

President

Missouri Nurses Association

Jackson, Mo.