Everyone puts their foot in their mouth from time to time. Usually it’s not such a big deal. But when you’re a lawmaker and you manage to throw an entire profession under the bus, the scale becomes epic.
Nurses: they’re great, right?
We owe so much to the medical professionals who help us stay healthy. Nurses are widely respected. One poll found that 85% of Americans rated nurses’ honesty and ethical standards as “very high” or “high”.
One senator might disagree.
Maureen Walsh, a Republican state senator who represents Washington’s 16th district, discussed a state bill that would provide nurses with better working conditions. Her comments on the legislative floor have since become the stuff of legend.
She doesn’t like the legislation.
She said, and I quote, that nurses in rural areas of the state shouldn’t have these protections because they “probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day.”
She really went all in.
To argue against better working conditions for people in one of society’s most trusted professions is one thing, but to put it in such disparaging terms is an insult to nurses everywhere.
A nurse responded.
Bonnie Castillo, a registered nurse and executive director of an organization representing nurses, clapped back at Walsh in a tweet . Castillo accurately points out how well nurses are regarded and tells Walsh where to put it, more or less.
Others chimed in.
Nurses have the potential to touch a lot of lives through the course of their work. Some on Twitter shared stories about what nurses had meant to them during difficult times.
Some had fun with it.
There’s the serious approach, there’s the heartfelt approach, and then there’s the humorous approach. After all, if somebody says something so ill-informed, sometimes it makes sense to just laugh off their dumb comments.
So there are cards!
In all seriousness, this is a great illustration of just how hard nurses work to get their certification. You can see why so many nurses took exception to the senator’s remarks.
Seriously.
Like, nurses work long hours under difficult conditions. The senator’s comments make it sound like they can barely afford to help any patients with the amount of card playing they’ve got going on.
Some of the stories hit hard.
Another nurse, Dave Mattox, shared his response in a detailed and thoughtful Facebook post . In it, he said that nurses actually do have to keep a poker face of sorts because of the unique demands of their job.
Things can get real.
Most professions don’t have to deal with horrifying scenes like the one seen above. That’s fine, because nurses are trained to handle this stuff. Just don’t doubt them or disparage them.
I like this.
Lawmakers are public servants and, as such, their constituents are well within their rights to let them know when they’ve messed up. Why not mail your thoughts directly to their office?
Senator Walsh is going to have a lot of playing cards.
No idea if she’s into any card games in her spare time, but this initiative will probably result in her having more decks of cards than she’ll know what to do with.
Senator Walsh backtracked.
It was called a ‘statement’ on her site, but reading the full text, it’s clear that Walsh’s response is an unequivocal apology . It should be interesting seeing her shadow local nurses!
What do you think?
Everyone’s said something dumb before, but it isn’t usually so public. What do you think of this saga? Do you know any nurses? Tell us what you think.
