Cutting RNs is a recipe for disaster

Re: Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare reducing nursing positions, by Brian Cross, March 11. Volumes of research tell us the following: cutting registered nurses increases the risk to patients of suffering complications and death. More RN care means better patient outcomes and fewer costly hospital readmissions.

Among the complications patients suffer when RN care is cut: pneumonia, sepsis, bedsores, blood clots, cardiac arrest and even death.

Cutting RN care is not “course correction” nor something to boast about. It is a recipe for disaster for our patients. The only winners are the Detroit hospitals, which will no doubt jump to recruit more highly trained, highly educated and valued RNs from Canada. Our patients will feel the real loss as quality of care will inevitably decline.

I encourage our patients to speak out about the care they need for their best health.