A South Cheshire nurse has penned this powerful poem as thousands are set for more strike action to highlight the growing crisis in the NHS.
Jenny Howarth has worked as a nurse in the region for several years.
She said she was compelled to write the poem to raise the public awareness of why nurses feel forced into taking industrial action.
Here is Jenny’s poem in full, below:
Nurses Strike.
It’s 5 o’clock in the afternoon,
I’m hungry and I need my lunch break soon,
But we are so short staffed, it’s happening again,
There’s so much to do, breathe, count to ten
Patients are not getting the care they should be,
Families getting frustrated and shouting at me,
Their loved ones they are desperate, needing the loo,
And the reality is there’s nothing I can do
I’ve got to prioritise, but they think I don’t care,
Next door someone’s dying, I’m in utter despair,
I’m shouted again, someone’s fell on the floor,
And another patients crying out, in pain and sore
She asked for pain relief two hours ago,
But someone else needs my help, blood sugars dangerously low,
I can’t do this safely with no staff to support,
My health care’s amazing but also feeling fraught
She’s tied up with a patient, angry and aggressive,
Everyone can hear him, he’s loud and expressive,
She should not be alone dealing with such a fuss,
Yet staffing levels are so bad, no one can come to help us
My patient who fell, needs a Drs review,
I’ll try my best, but they are busy too,
I’m bleeping the Dr, he’s shouting down the phone,
His work loads too high and he’s also working alone
This isn’t ok, it’s not good enough,
Our patients, they matter, it’s just so tough,
Teatime meds are due, and meals have arrived,
My dying patient, they haven’t survived
Mentally I don’t deal with that straight away,
It will hit me harder at the end of the day,
We don’t have a choice but to carry on, try to smile,
Teas are going cold, but no ones free for a while
Again relatives are getting upset,
The patients now hungry, cold and wet,
It can’t be justified, but there’s only one of me,
I’m prioritising patients needs, but expected to do the job of three
Staffing levels are dire, it’s unsafe, it’s scary,
We’re starting every shift feeling overwhelmed and wary,
We are all physically and mentally drained,
There’s so much pressure and so much strain
Mistakes will happen, which just isn’t fair,
On patients or staff, but does anyone care?
Too many nurses needing support from psych,
And for me this is why I am backing the strike
Not for money or greed as some people declare,
But for safer staffing levels, better patient care,
Let’s stop staff burnouts and patient neglect,
Cause let’s face it, we’re all truly wrecked
So please get behind us, for better quality care,
Because it will not happen when staffing’s not there.
Nursing’s a job but also a vocation,
And we, your nurses, are appealing to the nation,
Stand by us, back us in our fight to improve,
And any stigma around it let’s please remove,
We want to look after you with the care you deserve,
But this will not happen if we don’t hold our nerve
Let’s help care standards get back to the best,
And if we achieve this, we’ll feel truly blessed.
Union leaders are asking more nurses to strike next month in a bid to raise pressure on the government.
Nursing staff from more than 70 NHS trusts in England are set to take industrial action this week.
The Royal College of Nurses is pushing for a pay increase of 5% above inflation this year, which at the peak rate of inflation would have equated to a 19% rise, although reports have suggested it would accept 10%.
(Image for display only, creative commons licence from Public Health Image Library)
With pay increases less than inflation or mostly non existent for 10 years, 19% will still increases nurses pay to under the rate of pay when Labour were in power . .