SPEAKOUT

Put down

I just read Michael Jensen's column on the death penalty about remembering the victims not the murderers. I believe the death penalty should be televised live for everybody to see and I believe Michael Jensen should participate in one of these executions. I want to see him push the button or hit the switch. I want to see it live. I want to see him do it as a Christian, then I want to see him go to church and see what people think.

Certified and bonafide

This is to the owners of nursing facilities, to the state surveyors and to the nursing staff, mostly your RNs and LPNs. Most of the time, the CNAs are the ones that get the backlash. We're called bonafide poop wipers and we are put down. That's all well and good. But just remember if you have relatives that are in one of these facilities and you walk in and their hair is combed, it is because a caring CNA done it. Not because an RN done it, not because an administrator done it or because an LPN done it. If one of your family members is sent to the hospital because they are sick and their life is saved, that is usually because a CNA would not leave the LPN or the DON or the administrator alone. Yet they are paid minimum wage and $7.65 an hour at the most, even though state scale is $25 per each CNA that works there. Most of the time if a facility has 80 people you are going to have a day shift at the most three CNAs. You are going to have three CNAs in the evening and if you're lucky two CNAs at night. This is not because of the administrator and not because of the DON because they try. It's for the simple fact that the owners of these places that are drawing the most money do not care. You are told if you are a dietary manager for $4.65 a day you will serve three meals and you will serve three snacks. Believe you me, the meals are charged to the state for a lot more than that. You do not know what you're doing when you come in and start attacking a CNA. And to you owners, you should be ashamed of yourselves. You are making millions and billions off of these old people sufferings. There's a thing called home healthcare now, and if you care about your parents, I would suggest that's where you go. The CNAs are getting ready to walk out of your facilities, and then let's see who will take care of them.

Daily arrests?

How about Sikeston coming up with something in the paper each day or every week like Charleston does and they call it the DPS Report?