New York City nurses working in Gracie Square Hospital in the Upper East Side gathered at night outside the psychiatric hospital to bring awareness to chronic staffing shortages. The shortage of nurses endangers psychiatric patients as well as hospital workers, with many nurses having to treat ten or more patients at once, while the recommended patient limit is six in New York. With the mental health crisis worsening in New York City, many new patients may be prone to violence because they have not received treatment or medication yet. Nurses are demanding staff increases to improve working conditions, and they are also asking for salary raises.
See "Nurse shortage at a New York City psychiatric hospital could result in strike action", Josh Einiger, ABC 7, September 8, 2023