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quality

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Member since : May-28-2009 (Verified)
4 Ideas, 1 Comments, 153 Votes

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Ideas Posted

Every public servant takes an oath to 'Preserve and Protect the Constitution of the United States'. If they don't take the oath, they can't take the job. The problem is, do we have any evidence that they have the slightest idea of what the Constitution is, and the directives contained in it?

Taking the oath should be more than a symbolic ritual.

My idea is to require all would-be public servants, from the lowest to the highest, to take a test on their understanding of the Constitution. If they don't get at least 80% or so, they should be ineligible to serve in a position of trust. After a period of 1 year, they would be able to take the test again.

Test scores should be published, especially for candidates for public office.

This would help to add meaning to the practice of taking the oath of office. If they have to take an oath, why not demonstrate that they understand the highest law of the land?
One of the major, but little mentioned problems with our healthcare system is the widespread practice of having 12 hour shifts for Nurses. Doctors can put in much longer hours. Does this make any sense to anyone? Is it any surprise that health-endangering... or life-ending mistakes are made by tired, overworked Doctors and Nurses?

The 12 hour shift in hospitals is a major public health hazard. Doctors and Nurses should work no longer than 8 hours every 24 hours.

One of the major reasons for the 'Nursing Shortage' is that Nurses get burned out in the current system. I would bet that an 8 hour shift would go a long way to eliminating the 'Shortage'.

I would also expect that malpractice insurance rates would go down as fewer mistakes were made - this should make healthcare less expensive.
This seems logical, and yet bills with sweeping consequences, sometimes numbering in the hundreds of pages, are printed when there is no time for anyone to read the bill, let alone intelligently consider it, before voting. Constitution-bending pieces of legislation have been bullied into passage with a lot of noise about how we can't wait to pass it, even though we have to live with the consequences for years after it is passed. This is how the Patriot Act was passed, for instance.
As the employers of everyone working in Government, we deserve to know what we are getting for our dollars. For instance, how much are Government officials making in salary, benefits, perks & pensions? At a time when millions of Americans are losing the above, wouldn't it be enlightening to see a readout on how much a Senator is making when he or she is on TV?

So often, elected officials present themselves as being 'one of us', and yet they have medical insurance and pension systems not at all similar to the ones legislated to the general public. They can also qualify for these benefits in an absurdly short period of time.
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Comments Posted

quality 9 months ago
I think the common sense and logic of the idea speaks for itself. The work itself is highly responsible (life & death) and can be physically and emotionally draining.
Would you feel confident about a Doctor who is on his 16th hour operating on you? Or would you rather have one who has worked less than 8?

The 12 hour shift exists primarily to save hospitals the expense and trouble of hiring more people. I am certain that more people would stay with Nursing if they had a humane and reasonable work day.