Thumbs up for travel nurse rights!
At Travel Nursing Blogs, we love hearing from readers and travel nurses. We recently received an email from a travel nurse that dealt with travel nurse rights, according to both the American Nurses Association and to herself.
Travel nurse, Lacresha Hearn, RN, wrote:
“I have noticed a trend in the healthcare community as it relates to Travel Nurses. My feeling is that not only have the facilities forgotten, and the travel companies, but also we as Travel Nurses have forgotten that we have rights.”
Her concern is that the industry is not properly valuing all that travel nurses do for the healthcare field, and even that they may be considered “disposable” by some, rather than the high-value workforce they are.
Lacresha wanted to send out a big reminder to all the “Travel Jewels” out there, that they have important rights, and she invokes the ANA’s Bill of Rights:
- Nurses have the right to practice in a manner that fulfills their obligations to society and to those who receive nursing care.
- Nurses have the right to practice in environments that allow them to act in accordance with professional standards and legally authorized scopes of practice.
- Nurses have the right to a work environment that supports and facilitates ethical practice, in accordance with the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements.
- Nurses have the right to freely and openly advocate for themselves and their patients, without fear of retribution.
- Nurses have the right to fair compensation for their work, consistent with their knowledge, experience and professional responsibilities.
- Nurses have the right to a work environment that is safe for themselves and for their patients.
- Nurses have the right to negotiate the conditions of their employment, either as individuals or collectively, in all practice settings.
Lacresha wrote that “we as nurses should carry [these rights] close to our hearts.” She adds that having the right to “freely and openly advocate for ourselves” is a right that she wants all travel nurses to always remember.
She closed her letter with a bit of gratitude for her fellow travel nurses, writing, “Lastly, thank you for all you do and all of the sacrifices you make for this honorable profession. Your Fellow Travel Nurse, Lacresha Hearn, RN”
What’s your take on travel nurse rights? Would you add any special travel nurse rights to the ANA’s list?