Former nurse who walked out on the job because of burnout reveals why some in ... trends now
A nurse who left the profession due to burnout and ongoing staff shortages has revealed some in the industry have turned to sex work because it pays far better and they get less trouble from clients.
Amy Halvorsen, 34, was on the front line of the Covid outbreak serving in the neurology and trauma unit at Sydney's Westmead Hospital, but left two years ago.
She is now speaking out about the deteriorating conditions that led to her leaving, including abusive patients and senior management that offered only 'scripted rhetoric' when she complained.
Shockingly, some of the 75,000 Australian nurses who left the profession in the past two years now operate as sex workers, with Ms Halvorsen comparing the two jobs on The Project Sunday night.
'You're dealing with multiple people spitting at you and different body fluids and exposure and infection risks. You need to be educated, knowledgeable (and) professional,' she explained.
Amy Halvorsen (pictured) is a nurse who left the profession due to burnout and ongoing staff shortages
'I've had people say to me, I only deal with one man, one body fluid, totally safe, screened, no abuse, totally worshipped and I make a week's wage in a day.
'You have to weigh up what these people are exposed to in healthcare. Why would they not leave and do anything else.'
She said many of the nurses who have left are very dissatisfied with their pay.
'If you look at a first year nurse who has finished a thee-year degree and is heading into a career for the rest of their life, they start at about $35 an hour.
'There's Aldi warehouses that are offering people the same amount of money.
'So, nurses can leave and really just do anything. That was a big factor I pushed when I left and mentioned it to a lot of hospital management that we aren't uneducated.'
Other nurses who have left have become baristas, firefighters and one even
