The Wisconsin Hospital Association says state prosecutors will decrease the availability of health care statewide by charging a nurse with criminal conduct after a patient died due to a medication error.
….Hospital association spokeswoman Dana Richardson said that “it makes no sense to add to this tragedy by alleging that this mistake, as upsetting as it was, was more than a human error.” Further, she said, it will give people pause about entering health care fields at a time when many more workers are needed.
….”A number of schools of nursing have increased enrollment, so there is a sizable increase in graduates, and employing organizations have worked to make the work environment supportive,” said Marilyn Kaufmann, chair of the state Board of Nursing, which licenses and disciplines nurses and approves schools of nursing.
The state contains 33 nursing schools, involving five University of Wisconsin campuses, 16 technical colleges and numerous private colleges.