Issue link: https://nnumagazine.uberflip.com/i/198096
NewsBriefs:May 7/3/08 12:46 PM Page 6 Oakland. Referring to RNs as "patient advocates," the resolutions, which were passed unanimously, noted the record profits earned by nonprofit Sutter Health. Both cities called on Sutter management to settle the outstanding issues to the satisfaction of the nurses, and, as Oakland added, the technical employees of the CNA-affiliated Caregivers and Healthcare Employees Union, as quickly as possible. In addition to Berkeley and Oakland, the neighboring city of Albany passed a similar proclamation of support for Sutter RNs. Sutter nurses and their allies are optimistic that such gestures will be replicated throughout Bay Area communities. Sutter nurses, as well as ABSMC techs, have also been meeting with legislators as part of their ongoing community and political outreach. Their purpose has been to raise the public profile of the ongoing contract disputes, to set the record straight against misinformation provided to the public by Sutter, and to have politicians weigh in with Sutter as to why the contracts need to be settled. To date, nurses and techs have met with the following politicians or their aides: Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Assemblymembers Sandre Swanson and Mark DeSaulnier, and Senators Tom Torlakson and Leland Yee. Meanwhile, across the bay in San Francisco, a community-led campaign to fight the closure of St. Luke's Hospital is making encouraging progress. A blue ribbon panel has been convened by the city, and has made significant inroads towards revitalizing the facility through renovations and communityspecific care. The issues debated now surround the extent of rebuilding and the amount of community and government involvement in the construction. While this is excellent news for a community that faced losing a hospital completely, frustrations remain over the perception that the process is not transparent enough, and distrust lingers for Sutter's California Pacific Medical Center, the governing body behind St. Luke's. St. Luke's serves a disproportionate share of lower-income and uninsured residents of San Francisco, situated in the underserved south Mission neighborhood. Services provided to this community are all the more valuable in contrast to the high-flying incomes and soaring housing prices found in other parts of the city. The blue ribbon panel on St. Luke's will meet another two times this year. —staff report 6 REGISTERED NURSE Texas RNs Testify in Favor of Ratios TEXAS noc texas rns turned up the heat in the Texas ratios campaign on May 28 when several RNs testified before a Senate Committee hearing on the demonstrated benefit of direct-care RN-to-patient ratios. RNs presented ratios as the most financially responsible way to protect the investment the state has made in nursing education programs and address crises in the healthcare system. RNs and observers alike were pleased to note that even the most conservative of the senators agreed with several points raised by NNOC Texas RNs. Beverly Leonard, RN addressed the fallacy that ratios would make it even harder to find qualified RNs during a nursing shortage. "There is a shortage of RNs willing to work under the adverse conditions they are placed in on a daily basis in hospitals all across Texas," she said. Leonard then stated that up to 40 percent of nurses in some Texas counties choose unemployment over unsafe staffing conditions in Texas hospitals. As numerous official and anecdotal data have shown, the effect of ratios on patient care in California has been exemplary, attracting more than 80,000 to join or return to the nursing profession and dramatically improving patient outcomes. Elizabeth Higgenbotham, RN, JD also testified in favor of staffing ratios, drawing upon her wealth of experience with, among N W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G other things, the Texas Board of Nursing and her own private practice as a lawyer. When one of the senators asked if Higgenbotham was talking about ratios, she replied with typical Texan candor: "Darn right, I am." In her testimony, Dr. Denise Hart claimed that staffing levels in Texas hospitals were so bad as to drive a schism of inequality between doctors and RNs, and to further divide RNs from their patients. Hart strongly advocated for staffing ratios to retain skilled nurses in the state's medical facilities. Higgenbotham took the opportunity to explain her involvement with NNOC Texas and the ratios campaign: "I volunteer my time and talent with NNOC Texas for a simple reason; my focus has and always will be patient advocacy. I believe that making the workplace a safer place for patients and their nurses is key. I will stand with the organization that offers the best solution to the crisis we are facing." Texas RNs first introduced safe staffing legislation in 2007, and work continues to call attention to staffing ratios. NNOC Texas members are remaining politically active throughout the year to ensure that the Texas Patient Protection Act has enough momentum to pass the 2009 legislative session. As Leonard put it in her testimony before the Senate Committee, "our main objective is to protect and advocate for our patients." Video of the testimony can be viewed online through the Texas Senate Web site at www.senate.state.tx.us/avarchive/. —staff report JUNE 2008