Letters To The Editor

BUSINESS AND LABOR

Cheapskating nursing care is wrong

I have been a registered nurse for nearly 12 years, most of them on the oncology unit at Kootenai Medical Center. I consider myself highly energetic, organized and efficient, yet there are days I can only safely handle three or four patients.

Admittedly, the nurse-patient ratio varies in different areas of practice. But what Sacred Heart Medical Center is asking of its nurses is unsafe. Nurses are not afraid of hard work. What we fear is being forced to provide unsafe, unethical care.

In response to the letter from student nurse Lynda Heise (Feb. 19): While nurses establish a plan of care and organize their day in advance of the shift, this in no way guarantees the day will go according to plan. One of the consequences of the changes in health care is that patients usually are not hospitalized until they are extremely ill and therefore require more intensive nursing services. This, in conjunction with the scientific and technological advances in medicine, demands a safe and adequate nurse-patient ratio.

I have taken care of many critically ill and dying patients. Doing so is time- and skill-intensive. While nursing assistants are valuable assets in patient care, they in no way are qualified to replace the licensed provider.

As care receivers, I urge all citizens to stand together and demand safe care. Remember, every patient deserves a nurse. Sandra K. Cook, R.N., B.S.N., O.C.N. Athol, Idaho

Student should give it time, then see

Student nurse Lynda Heise (Letters, Feb. 19) needs to be reminded that nurse-patient staffing is not the sole issue between the Sacred Heart Medical Center administrators and the SHMC nursing staff.

Once Heise leaves the comfort of her nursing program and joins the work force, she will soon realize firsthand the issues.

Yes, burnout is a problem. However, did you ever consider perhaps some of the issues that contribute to burnout?

I encourage Heise to give it some thought and let us know how she’s doing in another 10 years. As I have watched patient-to-nurse staffing ratios increase in the past decade, I fear for what the future could hold for her and her classmates. Marie A. Hall, R.N., O.C.N. Spokane

Low gas prices part of a plot

Re: “Gas for under a buck” (Feb. 14).

Gasoline pricing is often touted as one of the great mysteries of life. However, I believe there is rhyme and reason behind the madness.

This latest price decrease serves two purposes. The first and foremost is a countermeasure to the recommendations in the Kyoto protocol. Oil, insurance and automobile companies do not want the American public to even recognize, let alone attempt to control, its driving addiction. Second, the oil-producing Arab countries that failed to openly embrace the impending war against Iraq are now being punished. Low gasoline prices will force down the price of crude oil, thus creating economic deficits in noncompliant countries.

Madness? Yes. Mysterious? No. Margaret E. Koivula Spokane

IN THE PUBLIC EYE

Drummond a great university leader

My heart sank with grief when I heard the news that, effective immediately, Mark Drummond had resigned his position as president of Eastern Washington University.

I grieve not for Dr. Drummond, because with his abilities and talents I am sure he has plans for himself. I am grieving instead for myself and for the Spokane community, because a true leader has stepped down.

This leader has spent every hour of the past eight years trying to develop an institution into a place where students are molded into lifelong learners. In my eyes, he has succeeded. He has devoted himself to every part of Eastern’s community, both internal and external. Through adversity and challenge, he has stuck with his vision for EWU.

Drummond has been an icon of leadership that many people should model themselves after. In my contact with him, he has inspired me, motivated me and served as a role model in my life. I wish there were more people in our community like him.

Drummond was open to students, helping them wherever he could, despite his difficult and often trying schedule.

Unfortunately, we are too quick to point fingers, too quick to judge. For that, I bow my head at the Spokane community. Our society has crucified a hero. When he was at his best, we stood behind him. When there was adversity, we stood over him and kicked him. Yet, he stood tall and took it.

Let’s not speculate about why he resigned. Let’s not speculate about whether or not it was good for EWU. Instead, let’s not kick him anymore. Let’s support him and embrace him as the leader we should see him as. Anthony A. Beals former student, Spokane

Let’s call a duck a duck

Andy Kelly (Letters, Feb. 15) was just a little loose with his facts when he said, “To date, Ken Starr has spent more than $30 million of our money and has come up with nothing.”

Starr’s investigation has produced 10 guilty pleas and three convictions so far, one being that of the governor of Arkansas. Obviously, more are on the way. Suborning perjury and obstruction of justice are not inconsequential matters.

It also seems that Kelly doesn’t understand the difference between a courtroom trial, where innocent until proven guilty applies, and public discourse, where there is no such stricture. It’s entirely reasonable and proper for each of us to conclude that if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck. We needn’t wait for the results of genetic testing before we have it for dinner.

Kelly may wear blinders if he wishes, but I wouldn’t want one of my granddaughters working as an unpaid White House intern, even if it did suddenly lead to an $85,000 job at the Pentagon, plus job interviews out of town at Revlon and with our ambassador to the United Nations at the behest of Vernon Jordan, Clinton’s good friend. Curt Messex Cheney

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

What seems to be perhaps is not

It must be me!

The economy is great, no unemployment, no inflation.

Am I the only one whose taxes have gone up? Am I the only one paying higher utility costs? Am I the only one who finds that each time I buy clothing or groceries, everything is higher?

But the price of gasoline is lower, ahhh.

Now for some interesting information. Do you know we owe $14 trillion in unfunded Social Security and Medicare obligations? It has been suggested the money received from the huge fines on tobacco companies be used for this, but it may be years before any of this is received.

Congress claims we are going to have a budget surplus this year. What to do, what to do? Couldn’t it possibly be used to pay down our $5.5 trillion national debt, now costing one out of every $7 just on the interest alone?

Nevertheless, the economy is great - no unemployment, no inflation.

My rose-colored classes are off. Are yours? Bunny Bippes Tekoa, Wash.

OTHER TOPICS

Rosemond ‘still doesn’t get it’

I am responding to the Parenting column, “Women also need to keep a promise.”

It’s 1998 and this psychologist still doesn’t get it. Families aren’t about who should be the head of the household and make the final decisions in family matters, and who the wife should align herself to, the husband or the children.

Families with children are about children and what’s best for them. The parent most involved is typically the mother - and that is who knows best. My husband was a great father to our children and there was never any doubt in our minds that they came first.

From the beginning of time, children and home have been very important to women and mothers. However, the reality for most families is that men often don’t commit to their families. Therefore, to suggest as John Rosemond does that the wife align herself to the husband is archaic, sick and self-serving.

He says that women also need to keep a promise. I say women are the promise. This has not changed since the beginning of time. Our promise is to our children and that they will always come first, as it is their right. Karen D. Peck Spokane

Internet pornography must be blocked

Re: “Caught in the Web” (Feb. 15).

As someone who works for a large school district in Spokane and also ministers to 125 men on the Internet who are “addicted” to pornography, I feel that this bill is very good and very needed.

Pornography is a $10 billion-a-year industry. Where its main focus used to be adults, it is now on teenagers and small children. Systems should be put into place and school districts should be under government accountability to implement filtering in their systems in order to receive funding.

Also, I question any group that can watch children being exploited, abused or killed by this industry and have a clear conscience in backing them using the First Amendment rights issue. No one has a right to exploit, abuse or kill a child. Tim Connors New Life Ministries, Spokane