Opinion: Fixed nurse-patient ratios are needed in more than just the ICU

If you have ever had a loved one in a hospital intensive care unit, you know. In that sterile scary room, the nurse can be the most important person. She or he is a steady presence — deftly monitoring the mountain of tubes and beeping machines, while at the same time calming frightened families and friends. I can remember what it was like being in that emotional and physical space. It’s a scene still emblazoned in my memory — my family and I standing at the draped hospital bed praying out loud that my dad would be okay.