Photo: Monument Health
Rising levels of anger and even violence toward healthcare workers are hampering patient care in South Dakota hospitals and clinics.
That’s according to news partner South Dakota News Watch.
Healthcare workers in South Dakota have been called offensive names, faced threats at work or at home, and occasionally have endured direct physical violence.
In the short term, dealing with inappropriate behavior takes the focus of doctors, nurses and aides away from patients who need help. In the long term, the outbursts are driving some healthcare professionals out of the field, worsening a worker shortage that threatens to reduce overall patient care.
Ashley Kingdon-Reese of Huron is an independent nurse who provides at-home care and runs a nursing consultancy. Kingdon-Reese recently experienced violence firsthand while providing nursing care to a woman with behavioral problems. The woman pushed Kingdon-Reese against a wall and bit her in the thigh.
In Rapid City, a woman unhappy with her husband’s care in the covid wing at Monument Health has protested outside the hospital and has urged people online to contact the hospital and complain.
Medical officials in South Dakota are urging patients and family members to act respectfully and trust that practitioners have their best interests at heart. If people do disagree with a doctor or nurse, they are asked to do so respectfully.
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