National Nurses United

NewsBriefs.REV_April 6/24/10 2:38 PM Page 5 up of staff nurses that will serve as the backbone of the contract negotiation process. Key issues at Del Sol include improving staffing at the hospital as well as increasing nurses' compensation, Sanchez said. Sanchez said that better RN staffing would give her more time to spend educating patients at the hospital, many of whom speak primarily Spanish and suffer from chronic conditions. "Nurses need more time to teach patients," Sanchez said. "When I do get time to sit with them, I can talk with them about exercising and diet." Petra Garibay, a critical care nurse at Corpus Christi Medical Center, said NNU representation will help nurses at her hospital use the skills that led them to choose nursing as a profession. Garibay said South Texas is often seen as an area resistant to change, but at her hospital, nurses voted by 65 percent for NNU representation. "I work with nurses that are about to retire and they told me they never M AY 2 0 1 0 imagined we would be unionized here in Texas because it's not a union state," Garibay said. "They are so happy they got to see it happen." Garibay said nurses at other area hospitals are already contacting Actor Martin Sheen campaigns for National Nurses United with nurses at her asking how they Valley Regional Medical Center in Brownsville (center left). Nurses at Del can organize. Sol and Las Palmas Medical Centers (opposite page and top), both in El All of the five Paso, Rio Grande Regional Hospital in McAllen (center right) and Corpus hospitals are affiliat- Christi Medical Center (above) celebrate winning NNU representation. ed with HCA, the launched a new front in the largest unorgancountry's largest private hospital system. ized state for RNs in the country, Texas, and NNU National Director of Organizing continued our national wave of organizing David Johnson called the rapid-fire election momentum," Johnson said. wins an endorsement of NNU's vision of "an The elections bring to 5,500 the total organization dedicated to successfully buildnumber of RNs National Nurses United has ing and wielding power for direct-care RNs organized since its founding last December. and their patients." "In voting for NNU, these nurses have —Staff Report 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 N AT I O N A L N U R S E 5

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