Puyallup nurse begs to join Washington coronavirus fight. It’s a shame the state won’t let her
Katherine Knable of Puyallup has nursing in her blood, a passion for seniors at risk of coronavirus in her heart and nearly 10 years of geriatric healthcare experience on her resume.
Trouble is, Knable also has a (barely) expired Washington state nursing license after taking three years off to raise her son. And despite a 10-month effort to renew the license and go back to work, an unyielding state bureaucracy blocks her path.
“I don’t know if there’s a disconnect between the Washington Department of Health and the State Nursing Commission,” she told the TNT’s editorial page editor this week. “But I’m begging them, ‘ tell me what you want me to do and I’ll do it.’”
Qualified medical professionals shouldn’t have to beg at a time when their skills and experience are, or may soon be, sorely needed on the front lines.
Knable already passed the refresher course at Bates Technical College required to reactivate her license. She was prepared to complete the mandatory 120 hours of clinical field work. But how is she supposed to do that when nursing schools have shut down their programs during a global pandemic?
Thank goodness the 36-year-old nurse refuses to give up. We hope scores of other Washingtonians — nursing and medical students, retirees and other caregivers sidelined for whatever reason — are fueled by the same unquenchable fire to help the sick and not take “no” for an answer.
All over the world, there’s a shortage of health workers willing and able to join the fight against coronavirus, as well as a shortage of ventilators, masks and other equipment they need to do their jobs effectively and safely. Our state is no exception.
Washington struggles to fill caregiver jobs even in the best of times. The workforce of licensed practical nurses, for instance, dropped by 28 percent between 2008 and 2019, according to the Washington Center for Nursing.
Knable, an LPN, is eager to help fill the gap. She says she started reaching out to the Nursing Commission on March 3. A month later, her exasperation level is rising — and who can blame her?
“Instead of caring for my fellow citizens, I’m filing for unemployment,” she wrote in a letter she copied to several public officials last week. “How many other well trained nurses and CNAs are benched by policy? Waive the bureaucracy. We’re here, we’re trained and we’re ready. Put us in, coach!”
Count us among those rooting for Knable to make the team. But the fact she’s received little more than polite form letters doesn’t inspire great confidence.
The most gracious response came from a Nursing Commission consultant: “Thank you for your willingness to run in when everyone else is running out. We are grateful for you.” But the bottom line was the same: No requirements are being waived at this time.
That’s disappointing, in light of a proclamation signed by Gov. Jay Inslee last week. It allows for the suspension of dozens of state licensing laws and regulations covering an array of healthcare providers, from physicians to nurses, pharmacists to home health aides.
He did it because Washington’s healthcare system risks being overwhelmed by the spread of COVID-19; as of Tuesday, the respiratory illness had infected more than 5,500 people and killed at least 225.
Among the statutes Inslee relaxed is one prescribing strict rules for renewing expired licenses, like Knable’s.
Previously employed by senior care facilities mostly in the Auburn area, Knable wants to work with this demographic again. It’s always a high calling, but especially now when people 65 and older represent 80 percent of COVID-19 deaths in the US.
She’s wanted to be a nurse since age 4, she said. That goal grew sharper in her late teens when she helped care for her grandmother.
Any big concerns about coronavirus exposure? “Of course you worry,” Knable said, “but it takes a special kind of person to be a nurse, and I’m more worried about those people in risk categories who need people to take care of them.”
As for her professional readiness, she says: “I can’t say it’s like riding a bicycle, because the medical field does change. But I know what I’m doing.”
To be clear, state health officials are taking important steps to supplement Washington’s stressed medical providers. That includes signing up volunteer emergency practitioners who are licensed in other states.
But a top priority should be enlisting local healthcare workers who know their communities and are passionate about helping their neighbors. Even if it means setting aside the regular rulebook, which the governor said is OK.
Put them in, coach.
This story was originally published April 1, 2020 at 2:00 PM.