National Nurses United

NewsBriefs.REV_June REV 8/20/10 4:36 PM Page 7 line for the safety of our patients and the quality of our lives. We don't want to strike, but the issues are so important we are willing to take this action," said O'Hearn. "The hospital's proposals would have a disastrous effect on the quality of patient care. Under their plan NARH once again would be allowed to use mandatory overtime to staff the hospital and patient care would suffer. NARH also wants to eliminate contract language that allows a nurse to decline overtime if she is exhausted or sick. As experienced professional caregivers, we know when we are unable to care for our patients, but the managers seem to think they know more than we do," said McConnell. Management also wants to ignore the posted work schedules, to be able to cancel shifts, to mandate extra shifts at their whim, to change the hours of a shift, and to mandate staff to come in early or stay late. This will leave the nurses unable to plan their lives and child care because they essentially would be on call 24/7. "Currently our contract states that once a schedule is posted it cannot be changed—a nurse cannot request time off, nor can management make changes," she said. "This new language would allow management to send you home, paying you for your time beginning at the start of your shift to when you were sent home, with an additional hour of pay." In addition, the contract would change the flow of weekend coverage and change a provision that gives nurses an additional day off each year. "Nurses who work the floor in the medical units, critical care, intensive care, and maternity all work every other weekend," O'Hearn said. "This would require us to work weekends, but they wouldn't be set. It also would change our extra 'family day' to one every three years. As nurses, we become emotionally involved in the care of our patients. We need to be able to make decisions that take mental awareness. We need time to recharge and take care of our own health. This doesn't provide that." According O'Hearn, "We need language to protect our patients and ourselves. We take this very seriously, and we all have a personal responsibility to our patients and ourselves. There is a correlation between personal health and job performance." —David Schildmeier J U LY | A U G U S T 2 0 1 0 Sen. Al Franken at a press conference for NNU's safe lifting bill What's Happening with NNU's National Bills NATIONAL ven leading into the August recess and into the premidterm election campaign period, federal legislation critical to registered nurses continues to progress. NNU's safe patient lift bills, HR 2381 and S 1788, have made exciting progress in recent months. In the House, HR 2381 has garnered 41 cosponsors, and S 1788 in the Senate has three. During our May National Nurses Week events in Washington, D.C., Sen. Al Franken, sponsor of S 1788, hosted a hearing on the bill where testimony by NNU nurses played a critical part in advancing its legislative prospects. NNU is also working with the disability community on more inclusive language that clarifies that this legislation is necessary to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act, since having proper lifting standards and equipment is so critical for the care of those with disabling conditions. The disability community's support will bring together an even wider group of allies to lobby for passage of this bill. E W W W. N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G Another of NNU's national legislative pushes is, of course, the effort to pass safe staffing ratios. Sen. Barbara Boxer of California has introduced S 1031 and Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois has introduced HR 2273. NNU is working to include language in an appropriations bill to require a federal study of positive outcomes associated with ratios, a move which would build momentum for ratios in the next Congressional session. Action on these two bills before the midterm elections is unlikely, though. Despite the slow pace of legislation, NNU is working to educate legislators in Washington, D.C. and around the country to secure their support for these critical bills that would allow nurses to more fully advocate for patients. And as we approach election season, it's important to make sure incumbents and their challengers know that registered nurses support life-saving NNU legislation and vote their values. This work will intensify after the election cycle closes. Nurses know that their patients need them as advocates no matter whether it's before, after, or the middle of any campaign cycle. —Donna Smith N AT I O N A L N U R S E 7

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