For nurses on the frontlines, every day is a battle

This is Working Together, a weekly series on the changing face of U.S. business. If there are topics related to the virus that you’d like us to discuss as a community, let me know in the comments below or send me an email: [email protected].

When registered nurse Katie Swinburne wakes up every morning in San Diego, Calif., she has a decision to make: Does she risk her life and go to work or does she put the safety of her family first?

“I signed up to take care of people, but I didn't sign up to do it without the proper protection,” she told me in a recent interview. “As much as I want to be a hero and as much as I want to help as many people as I can, I also have to be a hero to my nine-year-old who lost his father at six years old. I can't not be here. I'm having to prepare myself to make those decisions at some point and say what is too much and when I'm going to walk away.” 

Swinburne is one of millions of nurses across the country who are now on the frontlines fighting against the coronavirus pandemic. Nurses — who are 85% female in the United States — are often the first line of defense when patients come to hospitals with symptoms resembling COVID-19, the disease caused by this particular virus. And amid supply shortages, many nurses are going to work without proper protective equipment and masks. Hundreds of nurses are sharing on LinkedIn that they are fearful for both their mental and physical safety. 

Taylor Johnson, a registered nurse from the suburbs of Chicago, said that several of her nursing colleagues are pregnant right now, which prevents them from working directly with COVID-19 patients. While she is more than willing to step in for those nurses, the mask shortage makes her anxious about what the future might hold. 

“It just sounds so asinine and crazy that we're using the same mask all day long,” she said. “These are my coworkers. This is my family. No one wants to leave. Everybody wants to help.” 

The equipment shortages have made treating patients that much more challenging. With coronavirus tests in short supply and available only in limited locations, nurses outside of emergency rooms have had to send patients to hospitals to get tested. This isn’t an ideal solution, as hospitals have in turn been overrun by patients, Jacksonville Beach, Fla.-based nurse practitioner Ana Stauch shared. 

“[This is] such a huge problem over such simple things such as masks and face shields,” she said. “Every factory in the U.S. capable of making any form of [personal protective equipment] should be focused on this and only this for a short time so that America's community health care providers can help patients avoid going to the hospital.” 

U.S. job listings for health care positions spiked 35% in March, according to LinkedIn data, and registered nurses are among the most sought-after professionals right now. But as the coronavirus begins to take its toll on the very health care workers we need most to fight the pandemic, filling those roles will be challenging. In New York City, which has seen the most COVID-19 cases nationally, the death toll among nurses and doctors has begun to mount. 

“We are fighting an emotional war within ourselves as we enter our work fields during these times,” Vanessa Martinez, a registered nurse in Fayetteville, Arkansas wrote on LinkedIn. “We are passionate, loving and devoted to our patients, their family and loved ones. We are also devoted to our own health and the health and wellness of our loved ones.” 

Nurses working outside of hospitals are also bearing the brunt of this pandemic. Registered nurses who provide at-home care for the elderly — a population particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 — are feeling extra pressure to continue to go to work amid the uncertainty. 

“I still have to do all the shopping and running of errands, so I wear gloves and a mask when I go out in public,” Dana Chauncey, a Seattle-based nurse who provides at-home care to a patient that is over 75 years old, wrote on LinkedIn. “I have been asked to help at the hospitals near where I live. But since my patient is in the very high-risk group, I don't think it would be a good idea. I can't risk bringing something home and infecting her.”

So, what can we do to support nurses? Donating — and not hoarding — proper protective equipment is still very much appreciated, many nurses shared. But even if you don’t have access to a secret stash of masks, many nurses said a simple gesture can go a long way. 

“Be patient with us. I want to be able to test you. I want to be able to give you a diagnosis. I want you to know what is going on and we're there for you,” Johnson said. “We're also exposing ourselves on a daily basis to this because we're nurses and this is what we do and we want to take care of you... We're trying as much as we can to help you guys and at the same time risking our own health.” 

What’s Working

Pandemic stress management. You know that terrible feeling you have at the pit of your stomach? Your co-workers likely have that too. Checking in on your colleagues, emotionally proof-reading messages and setting up mini-breaks throughout the day might be more important than ever. [Sloan Review]

‘True colors.’ If you want to know what a company’s culture is really like, asking them how they supported their employees during the coronavirus may be a good idea. “I firmly believe that times like these reinforce how much we all need each other and how willing people are to pull together to help out,” the CEO of UK insurance company Royal London Barry O'Dwyer told Adam Bryant. [LinkedIn] 

Becoming CEO during COVID-19.  First-time CEO Jen Grant just left Google to lead mobile app startup Turbo Systems. “What a bizarre time to jump from a safe job at Google to a Series A start-up. It’s not like I haven’t experienced hurdles in my career, I am a woman executive after all,” she writes on LinkedIn. [LinkedIn]

What needs work

Equal Pay Day. Yesterday was Equal Pay Day and all signs point to the coronavirus making it more challenging for women to achieve pay parity in the future. “The Covid-19 pandemic will have a disproportionate negative effect on women and their employment opportunities,” researchers told the New York Times. Women earn on average 82 cents for every dollar that men earn. [NYTimes] 

Who’s Pushing Us Forward

Career pivots during pandemics. A lot of people are feeling helpless right now, both personally and professionally. My colleagues rounded up some examples of workers who were able to pivot their businesses and careers during this uncertain time. It’s worth a read. 

What topics do you want to discuss next week? Let me know in the comments below using #WorkingTogether