To the Editor of the Stanford Daily:

As a UCSF nursing student at Stanford Hospital and LPCH, my experience with the nursing staff has been nothing but positive. I would trust many of them to care for me or a family member. However, these nurses have left SHC over the past year. I feel the current contract negotiation is an opportunity for the hospital management to show that they care about the nursing staff and their needs. Management should show the same effort to retain and support talented nurses as they do their Magnet Recognition status.

Stanford Hospital has always been a promising career prospect. But now, I am concerned about the continuing brain drain. Maybe Stanford should consider investing in retaining, developing and supporting current nurses instead of making another hospital? In the end, it is not the nurses or hospital that will suffer during a strike, but the quality of care our patients will receive. In addition, a strike also jeopardizes some nursing students’ clinical hours and their chances to take their board exam.

Sincerely,

RJ Jacolbia

RN Candidate 2016

UCSF School of Nursing