Backing up the Front Line

Nurses Have a Major Role to Play in Limiting the Coronavirus Pandemic

Nurses are on the frontline of the novel cornavirus pandemic. Now is the time to take lessons from across the world to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and protective measure be in place to protect those frontline workers.

Mary Pat Couig, PhD, MPH, RN, associate professor in the UNM College of Nursing, has joined with two other nursing experts in disaster and public health emergency preparedness to publish a battle plan for nurses to take aggressive actions to protect colleagues, patients, themselves.

Their article, published in the American Journal of Nursing, urges that to meet the anticipated demand for health care services due to the pandemic, health care systems must:

• Implement crisis staffing contingency plans,
• Expand the workforce as soon as possible, and
• Ensure the health and safety of all nurses through stringent observation of infection prevention and control measures and access to personal protective equipment.

"It is incumbent upon all U.S. nurses to take aggressive actions to protect our colleagues, our patients, and ourselves," they write.