In My Backyard ::: How a Red State is now Slashing Health Care to the Poor,Disabled and Elderly....

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On a Personal Note about Being a Nurse here in Cleveland.....

Many of you know I am a Nurse of 20+ years, and I currently work Per Diem and Part Time, and Private Duty.( It also means I work a variety of other Part Time work to make ends meet and apply and work MANY non-nursing jobs. There are 25 Million Underemployed and UnEmployed, I am just one of the Many). I would love a full time Job in Cleveland, but the Health Care Industry is not as Rosy as some are painting it and "Hiring" is only a Mirage in this state. There are a couple of different issues, one is that Older Workers are viewed as costly to the system, so that is one issue. So sadly when one writes "Experienced" on the Resume, don't always expect a call back. One another note, many of the larger hospitals here are not hiring and have not been hiring for quite awhile.

Sadly this is means many nurses are leaving the area, and even new grads here were not offered jobs the past two years. Even my new hood that used to be full of residents and young doctors and many nurses, is now half empty, a change that happened in the past 10 months. It also is the ripple effect of limited school loans for Medical and Nursing students. Also since Kasich's Budget Cuts hit Hospitals and Health Care across the board, it has hit Home Care and all levels of care, Nurses are leaving the area, as more and more jobs are cut. Nursing Homes and Hospitals are laying off. Even the Two Free Clinics in the Area are laying off Nurses and Doctors. Two Hospitals are actually Closing due to some of these shifts in funds and many SNF's are actually closing. And about the TWO hospitals that are actually closing, this means that Blighted Impoverished parts of Town are going to be impacted. Also VA is moving care to all one facility-but sadly Cleveland is a town that is directly divided due to infrastructure failings ( Bridges that are being shut down, pending repair and add to that Major Bus Routes were slashed in the past two years, this means that the City is divided in half in regards to access to services). Literally the poorer part of Town is losing care and transit and services. ( And it is the side of town that has more elderly, disabled and impoverished.)

As many know my goal is to move to NYC by Spring for son to go to Film School and there are more jobs there than there are here. So my own plight has actually made me examine and write about the Health Care Delivery System here and it's own economic plight. Anyone who says that Politics does not impact Health Care or the Economy is not paying attention. Period.
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Video about Proposed Cuts was run on TV in May2011. Thousands lobbying, writing and calling on behalf of the pending cuts, even large Health Care Providers, were ignored and their concerns not even acknowledged. Media also sadly gave this issue minimal coverage.
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Gov. Kasich's Budget Cuts total 7% of Skilled Nursing Care, that translates to 472 Million Dollars. OHCA of Ohio has been advocating on this issue, by writing to Legislators. You can read this letter it carefully lays out all that is at stake for the health of millions.
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Cleveland Jewish News has more about how funds to Nursing Homes throughout the state have been slashed and the effects that it will have on so many nursing homes.( as a Nurse it would make sense to cut funds if Other Funds were being improved, ie other Long Term Care or Home Care or even Day Care programs for the Elderly. Even In Hospital SNF care costs have been cut. But to cut funds on all levels for all care, is not prudent or humane.
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PRNewsWire has more about the impacts of Pending Federal Cuts combined with State Cuts on the SNF costs and possible ramifications to Health Care for Elderly and disabled in SNF's. It will impact Care and also lead to even more Job losses. ( SNF is the common abbreviation for Skilled Nursing Facility. What the Governor has failed to acknowledge is that Cutting Services to so many elderly,sick and disabled will also mean huge job losses, and as the numbers drop care safety and delivery is also impacted. Since Kasich has been making changes to budgets there has been 21-51,000 job losses, and Healthcare People are now joining that exodus from Ohio.
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