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Profile:FINAL 5/29/09 12:22 PM Page 17 said Kennedy. "When people look at the color of your skin and stereo- not about nursing as a whole. I want to tell them, 'Look, don't get too type you, will you ignore them or educate them? It's an opportunity comfortable.' They really need to understand that what we have to educate them, for them to grow." She added that as a person of today we could lose." For example, she said that some coworkers sometimes grumble mixed ancestry, she believes she is more sensitive to difference and is careful with the words she uses – both qualities that have helped her about traveler RNs "taking our jobs." Kennedy asks her colleagues to immensely as a nurse in talking and connecting with the families of take a step back and consider why RNs from other states are flocking to California to work, and how they can help improve conditions in the patients she cares for. After high school, Kennedy returned to the United States to those traveler RNs' home states by unionizing hospitals, passing attend nursing school. After graduating with an associate nursing ratios, and reforming healthcare. The second major challenge for CNA/NNOC and the profesdegree from American River College in 1980, she worked at Sutter Memorial Hospital for a couple of years before moving to San Fran- sion, said Kennedy, is figuring out how to hold onto the art of nurscisco, where her husband attended dental school. She sought a job ing even as technology becomes so pervasive in hospitals. Particularly because Kennedy with Kaiser Permanente partly spends so much time with new because she wanted flexibility to nurses as part of her mentor transfer between cities and "A lot of RNs suffer from the 'me' program work, she worries that because she wanted to work at a syndrome. It's all about me, not about future generations of RNs will unionized workplace. Sutter nursing as a whole. I want to tell them, lose subtle assessment and critMemorial was not unionized and 'Look, don't get too comfortable.' They ical thinking skills and instead "the nurses were really not treatreally need to understand that what come to depend on machines to ed well," remembered Kennedy. we have today we could lose." tell them what's happening "I didn't really know that with a patient. "Now everything much about unions, but I knew that I would have a contract that gave me protections and rights, and is programmed and the computer is in front of you and gives you that I would have representation," said Kennedy. When she indeed limited choices," said Kennedy. "I try to tell the new nurses that it did move back to Sacramento in 1987 and started working in the isn't all about bells and whistles. All that could go away in a storm. intensive care unit, Kennedy said managers were violating the con- If you don't use it, you lose it." ■ tract so frequently that she felt compelled to get involved. From there, Kennedy said she continued to make progress in Lucia Hwang is editor of Registered Nurse. learning to become an activist. First, she got elected to the professional practice committee. Then she joined her local unit council. She started acting as an informal nurse representative. The next seminal moment for Kennedy was the major Kaiser rolling strikes of 1997 and 1998. Kaiser wanted huge takeaways from the RNs in contract negotiations, but the RNs stuck together and staged a long series of hard-fought strikes that eventually made Kaiser capitulate to almost all of their demands. "The strikes made Name: Cathy Kennedy, RN me realize that we really had more of a voice than I could have imagFacility: Kaiser Permanente, Roseville ined," said Kennedy. "Nurses do have power. I realized it's a matter of Unit: Neonatal intensive care knowledge and that I had a lot to learn. I shouldn't be so intimidated." Nursing for: 29 years In 2000, Kennedy went back to school to earn her bachelor's in On CNA/NNOC board since: 2006 nursing and also became an RN quality liaison, a leadership position Sign: Gemini for RNs in the Kaiser system dedicated to finding solutions to sysNursing pet peeve: When I see temic problems. In 2006, she was appointed to the CNA/NNOC nurses who lack sensitivity board of directors and elected the next year. "I took small steps along and passion the way," laughed Kennedy. "But now I'm out there out there." Favorite work snack: I don't snack! Looking back, Kennedy said that she is most proud of two things. Memorable work accomplishment: When I saw a little The first is being a part of CNA/NNOC's success in passing California 32-week boy who everybody said was going to die minimum RN-to-patient staffing law in 1999 and defending it over finally leave the hospital at 10 months old. Now he's 5. A these years. The second is having a role in guiding CNA/NNOC to lot of the nurses did not want to take care of him, but a grow across the country as an organization leading a national movehandful of us did it. ment of registered nurses. Color of favorite scrubs: Red! Looking forward, she said she sees two major challenges for Hobbies: I love to garden vegetables and flowers. CNA/NNOC. One is the ongoing struggle to educate RNs on why it's Currently reading: Just Culture, Balancing Safety and critical to think beyond their personal needs to fight, and fight hard, Accountability, by Sidney Dekker for overall improvements to the profession and healthcare. "A lot of RNs suffer from the 'me' syndrome," said Kennedy. "It's all about me, Profile M AY 2 0 0 9 W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G REGISTERED NURSE 17