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NewsBriefs_Mar RAD's changes Korea back 4/2/10 6:11 PM Page 11 NNOC Texas Rallies for RN Rights TEXAS hen managers at Christus Spohn Shoreline Hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas disciplined two nurse leaders for speaking up about unsafe staffing and other patient care issues, they might have hoped to silence RN voices. The effect was just the opposite. The plights of RNs Missy Gorbet, who was suspended, and Buddy Caro, who was fired, quickly drew support from other Texas nurses who recognized that their right to advocate for their patients was under attack, not just in Corpus Christi but statewide. On February 23, dozens of nurses from across Texas staged a rally in Corpus Christi, calling on hospital administrations to respect nurses who speak out for safe patient care. They marched to the offices of Christus Spohn's CEO and delivered over 400 postcards of support for nurse rights signed by nurses and community supporters, including teachers, firefighters and police. The postcards demanded that Christus Spohn, a Catholic hospital system, follow state and federal laws as well as Catholic social justice teachings in respecting nurses' W MARCH 2010 Texas nurses braved the rain to stand up for their rights February 23 (above). At right, Corpus Christi RNs Missy Gorbet and Roberta Weiss. right to advocate collectively for their patients. The nurses were joined by state Rep. Abel Herrero and Texas AFL-CIO President Becky Moeller. "Every day you go on the floor and we as nurses are short [handed]," Gorbet told a local television reporter. "You can have one nurse to anywhere from seven, eight, nine patients. That is unsafe." The rally was an indication of a growing RN movement in Texas. Over 10,000 nurse activists in the Lone Star state now participate in National Nurses Organizing CommitteeTexas. The rally comes on the heels of another victory for Texas RNs, when a nurse in West Texas was acquitted of trumped-up charges filed after she reported a local doctor for endangering patients. 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 NNOC-Texas has sponsored state whistle-blower protection legislation to shield nurses who expose unsafe conditions at their workplaces. Nurses will hold public hearings on the legislation around the state this year. After filing unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, Gorbet, Caro, and NNOC-Texas won a settlement that clearly acknowledges Texas RNs' legal rights and duties as patient advocates. The hospital paid Gorbet and Caro over $25,000 in lost wages and erased any mention of the disciplinary action from their records. Hospital management also posted notices inside the facility acknowledging the right of RNs to act collectively to address workplace issues free of intimidation or coercion. —Staff Report N AT I O N A L N U R S E 11