A Washington state lawmaker has provoked the ire of nursing professionals after saying that some nurses “play cards” for a “considerable” portion of their shifts.
State Sen. Maureen Walsh, R-Walla Walla, was debating a bill on Tuesday that would require uninterrupted meal and rest breaks for nurses and would also provide mandatory overtime protections for them.
Walsh pushed for an amendment that would exclude hospitals with fewer than 25 beds from the provision, arguing that such small facilities struggle to provide 24-hour care as it is.
“I would submit to you that those (small hospital) nurses probably do get breaks,” Walsh said, according to The Olympian. “They probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day.”
Walsh’s remarks were posted to a blog by the Washington State Nurses Association, receiving so many hits that the site crashed. – READ MORE