National Nurses United

At a University of California hospital in Sacramento, nurses had 15 minutes to prepare to admit a "rule-out Ebola" patient. Administrators tied a folded gown "bandana-style" to cover the completely exposed neck of the nurse assigned to the patient. When nurses asked for N95 masks, managers said that would be "against protocol." At another UC hospital in San Francisco, nurses were told that the hospital had "Ebola carts" stocked with personal protective equipment they would need, but that turned out to be a lie. Materials services told RNs no cart existed and all the gear was on backorder. At a Washington, D.C. hospital, nurses reported that isolation rooms didn't appear to be working and that when RNs asked about goggles, administration told them they could not afford them. At an emergency room in the Los Angeles area, nurses were told that doctors would not be entering rooms with Ebola patients and conducting physical assessments through the negative pressure room glass doors only. Doors for the rooms had been incorrectly installed to swing outwards, not inwards, so instead of rehanging them, administrators stuck strips of Velcro around the doorjambs in efforts to keep them closed. And, of course, at a Dallas hospital in September, a man with Ebola was sent home, only to return days later to eventually die of the virus and not before passing the disease on to two of his RN caretakers. This is the state of preparedness of American hospitals for not only Ebola, but a host of other infectious diseases. "What Ebola has really exposed is how the United States does not have a real healthcare system," said RoseAnn DeMoro, executive director of National Nurses United, which has been the leading group demanding the highest standards for personal protective equipment and hands-on training for healthcare workers. "What we have is a healthcare industry. And the message nurses have been get- ting and are getting from them is that we're expendable. They are protecting their profits, not protecting their caregivers, and the nurses are mad. And we will not stop until every nurse at every hos- pital in the United States gets the optimal protective gear, the prac- tice and training needed to safely use it, and the staffing needed to care for patients." National Nurses United nurses exploded into the national spotlight this September with what they do best: advocacy on how to stop Ebola for themselves, their patients, and their communities. While other healthcare organizations and even the federal Centers for Disease Con- trol fumbled over what requirements and protocols to set for hospitals in preparing for and handling Ebola patients, NNU registered nurses 12 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 S E P T E M B E R | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4 ((( Sounding the Alarm ))) During this Ebola crisis, NNU nurses have been the nation's leaders in advocating for the health and safety of workers and patients, as well as the public.

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