National Nurses United

TOC 12/12/06 12:14 PM Page 2 Registered Nurse LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT w h at d o e s n ' t k i l l yo u makes you stronger. I am really taking that old adage to heart. It was a tough, but rewarding few months full of lessons and experiences that I know we will all carry with us as we continue our fight for real healthcare reform – winning universal healthcare with a single, quality standard of care for all. Though we didn't succeed in passing Proposition 89, the November initiative that would have cleaned up the corrupting influence of corporate money on California's political system, we have put the issue out there as never before and shown that nurses are always principled and ready to take on a challenge. We already do it at our work every day. We will build on the positives and continue to educate our colleagues, our patients, and the community. We are very persistent. All we have to do is look back at our history to know that we will prevail, eventually. For example, most of the provisions that we aimed for in 1996 with Prop. 216, an HMO reform measure that also didn't pass, we subsequently succeeded in passing through the Legislature. We'll do the same with Clean Money. My deepest thanks to all of you for your commitment and hard work We are already moving on to plenty of exciting work across the country. In mid-November, hundreds of Texas registered nurses converged in Austin to spotlight patient and RN advocacy legislation that we are preparing to introduce there. It was a phenomenal, inspiring event that's long overdue in that great state, and the Texas nurses are jazzed that CNA/NNOC understands their frustrations and REGISTERED NURSE,™ (ISSN 1932-8966) The Journal of Patient Advocacy, November 2006 Volume 102/9 is published by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, 2000 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94612-2908. It provides news of organizational activities and reports on developments of concern to all registered nurses across the nation. It also carries general coverage and commentary on matters of nursing practice, community and public health, and healthcare policy. It is published monthly except for combined issues for July and August, and January and February. Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, California. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Registered Nurse, 2000 ™ Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94612-2908. To send a media release or announcement, fax (510) 6630629. Registered Nurse™ is carried on the CNA/NNOC website at www.calnurses.org. will help them protect their patients. And in California, the California Nurses Foundation, a nonprofit supporting organization to CNA/NNOC, has released data that shows its mentor program is working. Newly-hired nurses who do not participate in the mentor program are seven times more likely to leave their hospitals than those who do participate. These are encouraging results and will go a long way toward reducing the nursing shortage and developing a new generation of patient advocates. Check out the feature article for details. Again, thank you to everyone for this journey we've traveled together this fall. I am very proud to be part of this continued fight. Deborah Burger, RN CNA/NNOC president For permission to reprint articles, write to Editorial Office. To subscribe, send $40 ($45 foreign) to Subscription Department. California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee also produces California Nurse, which it ™ will continue to publish periodically. PLEASE CONTACT US WITH YOUR STORY IDEAS They can be about practice or management trends you've observed, or simply something new you've encountered in the profession. They can be about one nurse, unit, or hospital, or about the wider landscape of healthcare policy from an RN's perspective. They can humorous, or a matter of life and death. If you're a writer and would like to contribute an article, please let us know. Our contact information is in the masthead. executive editor Rose Ann DeMoro editor Lucia Hwang graphic design Jonathan Wieder communications director Charles Idelson contributors Hedy Dumpel, RN, JD photography Jaclyn Higgs, Tad Keyes editorial intern Bonnie Ho

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