By Florence F. Hibionada

Plastic cellophanes 'endangered specie' soon? If the Municipal Government of Santa Barbara, Iloilo is to be followed, it will be.
In fact, a warning is now out to all residents and visitors that not only is it illegal here now to litter and scatter plastics and wrappers, the Municipal Government has also outlawed and criminalized its use.

As such, vendors, traders, business establishments and locals themselves are prohibited to use plastic bags. If caught, a hefty fine awaits the violators with no less than Santa Barbara Mayor Isabelo Maquino leading the information campaign. A letter was also individually sent to all residents in the past month with Mayor Maquino explaining the rationale of the ordinance.

The message is clear - it is all about saving the environment and Santa Barbara's aggressive drive to become "eco-friendly."

"Ang Gobyerno Munisipal sang Santa Barbara naga dihon sang isa ka ordinansa nga ipahibalo nila sa ila mga suki o kon manugbakal nga magdala sang ila kaugalingon nga suludlan sa tion nga sila ang magbakal sa tindahan. Tinutuyo naton nga maibanan ang ginagamit nga plastic cellophane kag kung mahimo nga aton untaton ang pag-gamit sini (The Municipal Government of Santa Barbara passed an ordinance requesting the vendors and customers to bring their own bags when going to the market. The purpose is to lessen the use of plastic cellophane and if possible, stop its use)," the Mayor's letter to the vendors as obtained by The News Today (TNT) went.

The prohibition took effect last week and is in full swing this week and the coming weeks. The exception only applies to ice candy, ice water sellers and retailers of salt, sugar, coffee and milk. Other than them the selected few, "tanan nga mga pamalaklon dapat isulod sa libon, katsa, alat kag iban pa nga eco-friendly nga suludlan (all purchased goods must be placed inside native basket, bag made of cloth and other similar eco-friendly bags)."

Maquino went on to further explain and warn the locals that continued burning of cellophane plastic releases harmful chemicals to the environment. Such, the mayor warned, causes various ailments such as cancer, asthma, chronic bronchitis, nervous system damage, developmental problems on children, birth defects and miscarriages, skin rashes, persistent coughs and throat irritations.

Mayor Maquino also shared how Bangladesh implemented a total ban on plastic bags back in 2002 citing environmental threat.

Welcome to the nurse's world, through the words of those who live there.

This telling reflection on the profession appears in a paper published in the July-September 2007 issue of Nursing Forum titled appropriately "Giving Voice to Registered Nurses' Decisions to Work."

Suzanne S. Dickerson, D.N.S., associate professor in the University at Buffalo School of Nursing, is first author. The paper presents results of an analysis of written responses to an open-ended question contained in a survey that assessed work satisfaction of registered nurses. The study's quantitative results were published in 2006.

Analysis of the comments identified four major themes: competing priorities, balancing priorities, practice deterrents and collegiate support, which encourages nurses to stay in practice.

"Listening to the nurses' voices, it was amazing that in spite of the volume of deterrents to working, they continued to care for their patients," Dickerson said. "One emphasis that was newly apparent was that nurses repeatedly told about their work patterns or trajectory that reflected the need for flexibility to fit family needs."

Demographically, the respondents were mostly female (97.2 percent), mostly white (89.9 percent) and the majority, 66.7 percent, were married. Those currently working as nurses were divided fairly evenly between full-time and part-time positions (38 percent versus 32 percent). Of the 332 who indicated their current position, two-thirds were involved in direct care of patients, and more than half (53 percent) did so in hospitals. Another 18 percent worked in ambulatory care settings. The average age of respondents was 50, and they had an average of 20 years of experience.

Comments categorized into the "Competing Priorities" theme centered on dedication to nursing as a career and pride in the work, as well as remarks stating the need to place family needs above professional needs at certain stages, particularly when there are small children or aging parents to care for.

In the related theme of "Balancing Priorities," nurses commented on the need to interrupt their job trajectory to care for family, described returning to school in their middle years and their wish for a better work schedule, less shift work on holidays and weekends, increased opportunity for promotion and for salary increases.

Some nurses described switching positions to lessen stress and lower the pace, and taking part-time positions for more personal time and to avoid work-place politics.

As one nurse commented: "I have found as I age…my time off is more important than most all other aspects."

A major theme under "Practice Deterrents" was pay inequity. Commented one participant: "Money is a major issue with many nurses. Although people say money is not a motivator, almost every nurse I know would be much more motivated if we were paid well enough so that we are not forced to work two jobs and if our advanced degrees were compensated."

Another common deterrent was lack of respect, which is the reason one respondent is leaving the profession: "We have demanding stressful roles. Yet our employers see us as expendable, replaceable and interchangeable with a variety of lesser-trained support staff.

Other comments echoed this concern: "The voice of experience is not respected; the older nurse is not valued," comment one respondent.

Work demands -- "My heart is at the bedside, the rest of my body couldn't do it"-- and safety issues -- "I left hospital nursing after 20 years because I became horrified and disgusted at the mistakes being made" -- also were mentioned frequently as a deterrent.

The final theme covered comments on why nurses stay in practice, and collegial support loomed large. "My coworkers are the reason I stay," wrote one nurse. "I am grateful for the people I work with," wrote another. "…I could never do my job without them."

Dickerson noted, "The fact that collegial support was the most important factor to continue working demonstrates that 'nurses-supporting-nurses' could be developed into a strong network to promote a solidarity that could be operationalized through nursing organizations.

"It would behoove employers to listen to the nurses voices to improve quality and at the same time promote retention."

Additional authors on the study were Carol S. Brewer, Ph.D., UB associate professor of nursing; Christine Kovner, Ph.D., professor of nursing at New York University, and Mary Way, a UB nursing doctoral student.

The study was funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by University at Buffalo.