She was born November 11, 1937, in Troy, New York to Thomas and Florence (Palso) Connally. As a teen, Carol attended Catholic Central High School in Troy and then went on to St. Peter School of Nursing in Albany, New York where she received a diploma in nursing. Feeling a special call to serve, Carol entered the Maryknoll Convent in Ossining, New York. After taking her vows, she was sent to St. Francis School of Anesthesia in La Crosse, WI, graduating as a nurse anesthetist.
As part of the funding package, the U.S. Department of Education is ending the Grad PLUS loan program, which allows prospective graduate students to borrow up to the full cost of attendance. Instead, the agency will be instituting borrowing caps, making the maximum figures dependent on whether a student is pursuing a "professional degree." Currently, the list of the graduate programs designated as professional spans a variety of fields, from medicine, dentistry, and law to more surprising inclusions like theology.
While NYSNA nurses are fighting for safe staffing, reverse staff and service cuts that harm patient care, stronger safety and workplace violence protections, guardrails on the use of artificial intelligence in patient care, and fair wages and benefits to recruit and retain enough nurses for quality care, the total compensation for Montefiore, Mount Sinai, and NewYork-Presbyterian CEOs, including salaries, benefits, and perks, increased by over 54% from 2020 to 2023 according to 990 tax filings
Severance is the first hospital in South Korea to trial a four-day workweek, aiming to improve the work-life balance of its staff. Under the program, introduced in 2023 following an agreement between labour and management, some hospital employees are allowed to take three days off per week in exchange for a 10 percent reduction in salary. Staff take turns participating in six-month rotations, after which they return to a five-day week.
The layoffs, which are set to take effect in October, will eliminate 41 nursing positions and one art therapist role at Kaiser's San Rafael Medical Center, according to Monday WARN filings with California's Employment Development Department (WARN documents are generally required by the state for significant layoffs). The staff reductions also include two employees in Oakland, one in Pasadena, four in Corona and eight in Pleasanton, mostly in IT consultant, engineer and environmental health specialist roles.
In any new environment, acceptance can take time. Adjustments in dynamics and workflows require patience and understanding from both the newcomer and existing team members.
A survey of Royal College of Nursing members showed 91% did not think the 3.6% pay increase this year was enough. The RCN warned there was widespread dissatisfaction with the NHS contract, known as Agenda for Change. Nurses begin on band five, with a starting salary of just over 31,000, after this year's pay rise. Nearly half of nurses are on this bottom band and research shows many struggle to move on from it.
"I'm basically starting over - that's the part that bothers me," said Francis, who's in her 50s and based in the Northeast US. "But I have to do what I have to do to survive."
Niamh O'Shea coordinates patient care and manages junior staff while doing the role of a clinical nurse manager 2, yet lacks the corresponding title and salary.