National Nurses United

NewsBriefs.REV_April 5/8/10 12:05 AM Page 14 WRAP-UP REPORT Florida nurses continue to actively support the Florida Hospital Patient Protection Act of 2010, state legislation that would mandate minimum RN-to-patient staffing ratios in hospitals. Florida has a relatively short legislative session, so nurses are writing letters to their legislators as well as making weekly trips to Tallahasseeto speak to them about the urgent need for safe staffing and improvements in RN rights to advocate for patients.  There has been ongoing phone banking with nurses talking to other nurses about why the bill is important and asking them to join the campaign.  More and more nurses are filling out the NNOC-Florida/NNU Nurse Report Form to keep track of what is really happening in the hospitals and sharing those stories with legislators.   Nurses are clarifying the differences between the NNOC-endorsed bill that calls for mandated ratios based on the individual acuity of the patient and set through a uniform Patient Classification System, and the bill endorsed by the Florida Nurses Association that leaves the final decision about staffing in the hands of hospital administrators rather than nurses. Illinois registered nurses at University of Chicago Medical Center held a press conference April 23 demanding that the hospital improve RN staffing and citing a new study that shows RNto-patient staffing ratios save lives in California, where they have already been implemented. State Representative Mary Flowers, who has introduced a safe staffing bill in the legislature modeled on California's law, also attended the press conference. "Hospitals in Chicago care for the most acutely ill patients in Illinois," said Muriel Lee, BSN-RN, a UCMC nurse who works in the multi-specialty unit. "With shorter hospital stays and sicker patients, improved nurse-to-patient ratios are a must." Ohio On March 12, ten nurses from across the state attended a meeting convened by the Ohio Department of Health to discuss which hospital quality measures should be reported to the public on a new website, Ohio Hospital Compare.  Dayton NNOC member Janet Michaelis, RN argued that RN-to-patient staffing ratio  information is an important 14 N AT I O N A L N U R S E aspect of patient care that can be easily reported to the website. The next step for NNOC will be participating in a subcommittee composed of hospital industry, nursing union, and consumer representatives.  NNOC's goal is for the public to be able to compare hospitals' actual, existing staffing ratios on the site. Nurses would also be able to check the website for their own hospitals' ratio reporting and take action if the hospitals are not reporting truthThe 400 nurses and health fully. Nurses and community professionals had been negotiatOn another front, Heather members rally for safe ing since last October, with the Ives, RN organized a healthcare patient care during last eight sessions overseen by a forum attended by 120 people in contract negotiations federal mediator. The caregivers Lorain County March 24, which at Morton Hospital educated the community about resulted in the formation of a in Taunton, Mass. their cause, leafleting at local new Lorain County chapter of shopping centers and sporting events and the Single Payer Action Network of Ohio. conducting informational picketing outside the hospital. Massachusetts registered nurses and health professionals at Morton Hospital in Taunton reached Texas agreement on a new contract with the hospital nurses at Cypress-Fairbanks Hospital in in late April, averting a strike vote scheduled for Houston voted this month to remain April 28. The pact includes strong language to members of National Nurses Organizing limit mandatory overtime, protection of the Committee-Texas, defeating an attempt to defined benefit pension plan, a salary increase remove the union at the hospital, the first to allow Morton's professional staff to keep pace private-sector medical facility in the state to with other hospitals in the market, and pay unionize. parity for Morton's home care nurses. NNOC-Texas represents about 300 regis"We are thrilled to have achieved this tered nurses at Cypress-Fairbanks, who first settlement, which is a victory for all of us— voted to join the organization in 2008. The nurses, health professionals, management, nurses hope they will now be able to negotiate and most important of all, our a first contract with management. patients, who will benefit from "We stand together to make a Texas RNs at Cypressnurses having safer practice better workplace for our patients Fairbanks Hospital conditions," said Joyce Wilkins, and for ourselves," said Erica are all smiles after RN, chair of the nurses' local Ramhatal, an RN at the hospital. defeating an attempt bargaining unit of the Massa"We are so proud to be part of to repeal their union chusetts Nurses Association. National Nurses United." rights this month.

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