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10 N A T I O N A L N U R S E 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 J U N E 2 0 1 4 California As part of a stepped-up campaign by Kaiser Permanente nurses and the local community to prevent the giant healthcare system from closing its facility in Manteca, the City Council June 3 adopted a resolution calling on Kaiser to immediately restore services, such as cardi- ology, echocardiogram, and ultrasound, and reopen units, such as the medical-surgical floor and subacute unit. "Our patients pay a lot of premiums for services that are no longer available to them in their own county," said Ruth Somera, a Manteca RN. "We will contin- ue to fight to restore these services to our community." Patients have been getting trans- ferred to other facilities for these services, sometimes incurring huge, hidden costs. One patient who had been transferred by ambu- lance to Kaiser's Modesto facility testified at the City Council meeting that he was later billed $6,900 for the ride. Texas RNs understand that a decent-paying job is critical for achieving health. So this May, all four National Nurses United leadership councils in El Paso initiated a $15-an-hour living wage campaign. The nurses have joined with other unions and community groups to form an interim steering commit- tee to lead the campaign, and proposed city, county, school, and hospital district ordi- nances are now being drafted. Washington, D.C. The National Labor Relations Board, a federal agency, found in May that MedStar Washington Hospital Center violated federal law by refusing to provide nurses and union representatives with copies of the 2012 AHRQ Survey on Patient Safety Culture, copies of the current staffing plans for each unit, and daily deviation from the estab- lished staffing plans. Rather than work with nurses to improve staffing and patient safety at the hospital, management claimed confi- dentiality and wasted thousands of dollars to wage a failing legal battle to withhold the information. This second decision was the result of an appeal that MedStar filed follow- ing the Sept. 11, 2013 ruling of Judge Arthur Amchan, an administrative law judge of the National Labor Relations Board, who had already found that the hospital must provide the requested information. Veterans Affairs The annual VA Secretary's Awards in Nurs- ing Excellence program, established in 1984, honors exceptional RNs working within the Veterans Health Administration. The recipi- ents' contributions to the care of patients in any VA healthcare setting must be patient- driven and demonstrate such excellence as to merit recognition from peers. This award is given only once to an individual, and is considered one of the highest honors bestowed upon a VA nurse. This year, two NNU leaders were nominated for this national recognition. Colleen Murphy, RN is the associate director of NNU-VA Buffalo and works as a clinical nurse expert in the special- ty care clinics. She was honored for her lead- ership, clinical expertise, and dedication to veteran-centered care. She is known as a nursing leader at the local, state, and national levels in both the professional and labor- collective bargaining arenas. By providing exemplary nursing care, she champions opti- mal health for the veterans she serves and promotes preventive care for our community. Dr. Kathleen A. Vertino, APRN works as a psychiatric nurse practitioner in Buffalo and as an NNU-VA local nurse representative. She was honored by her colleagues for her commit- ment to the interdisciplinary team and dedica- tion to veterans and nursing staff. Known for her clinical expertise, leadership qualities, compassion for veterans and business acumen, she is sought by peers, colleagues, and leaders for participation in numerous and diverse task forces, academic and professional develop- ment programs, strategic planning initiatives and operations issues at the local, VISN, and VHA national level. NNU-VA Buffalo Director Bonita Reid, RN supported them at their facility awards ceremony, where family and colleagues cele- brated their accomplishments. —Staff report WRAP-UP REPORT RNs from around Illinois converged at the capital April 17 to testify at a committee hearing in support of a state safe RN staffing ratios bill, H.B. 0012. From left: Veterans Affairs RNs receive system's highest award; RNs in El Paso, Texas spearhead a $15-an-hour living wage campaign