The issue of nurses striking is a very troubling one. It is extremely difficult to arrive at a moral decision. However, many sides need to be looked at in order to make one. I made my decision by looking at the strike from the nurses" point of view, the administrators" point of view, my personal experience, Christian teaching, and the teachings of the Catholic Church. Having looked at all possible information, I feel confident that my final judgment was the moral one.
The first information I examined was the nurses" reasons for holding a strike. For instance, they feel that patients" lives are in serious danger, even during routine surgery. They feel that the hospitals are understaffed, and that the nurses are overworked. As a result, patients are not given the best care. They say they are often forced to ignore potentially life-threatening situations, such as high fevers. They also say that they are unable to personally care for patients, and do things like comfort them, since they have so little time. In addition to this, patients are often discharged before they should be, in order to cut costs. Nurses also have more monetary reasons for striking, such as their low wages.
After looking at the nurses" reasons for striking, I examined the administration's reasons for opposing it. First, they need to compete like any other business. At times they must function like a business in order to stay open. They point out that hospitals often lose money, and they cannot afford to spend any more. Administrators also point out that strikes discourage people from becoming nurses, and more nurses are desperately needed.
After considering both the nurses" and the administrators" sides, I looked at my own personal experience. Over the summer, I spent time in a hospital as a patient, and nurses were mostly the ones who looked after me. Often my heart monitor's alarm would go off, and a nurse would not show up for ten to fifteen minutes.
