Traveling Nurses Deliver Much Needed Care
Hospitals across the country are turning to traveling nurses for help as COVID-19 patients fill intensive care units. NBC's Sarah Dallof reports.
(NBC News) — Grover Street has called many places home during the pandemic, working as a travel ICU nurse in COVID-19 hotspots.
“I see people dying on a daily basis. And it’s very sad,” he says.
Skilled medical professionals are in high demand according to Fastaff Travel Nursing, which has placed nurses including Grover in 400 facilities in almost every state.
“When you look at 2020 over 2019, we had twice as many working nurses on the road, which is a lot,” says Fastaff’s Lauren Pasquale Bartlett.
It’s one solution some hospitals are turning to as COVID cases climb.
A recent Associated Press analysis found 40 percent of Americans live in an area where ICUs are running out of room, taxing supply and personnel.
“The supply of nurses out there is very small and the demand is incredible,” says Dr. Steve Merta, Chief Medical Officer at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada. “We are offering pick up shift bonuses for our nurses in the critical care areas.”
While case numbers appear to be plateauing in some areas of the country, health experts are concerned about more infectious covid variants.
Street says the public’s help is needed more than ever.
“Get the vaccine, social distance, because this is not going away,” he warns.
Even before the pandemic, the need for nurses was growing.
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