National Nurses United

OHIO R egistered nurses who work throughout the Cincinnati Veter- ans Administration Healthcare system held an informational pick- et Jan. 30 to draw attention to eroding patient care conditions, including chronic short staffing and barriers facing veterans who seek care at the Cincinnati VA. Representatives of Disabled American Veterans, Cincinnati Chapter 15, joined with nurses to speak out about their concerns as VA patients. "Cincinnati VA nurses are urging manage- ment to make reforms that will ensure that our nation's heroes, the patients we serve, get the quality care that they deserve," said Sadie Hughes-Young, RN and a VA director for National Nurses United. "As VA nurses, we are committed to improving the care at the VA medical center because we know that the unique healthcare needs of veterans are best met through the VA system." Chronic understaffing of registered nurses and ancillary staff throughout the Cincinnati VA system is seriously impacting the quality of patient care, nurses say. This includes delays in the provision of care at the bedside, wound management, radiology, laboratory, and other specialty care, such as cardiology and pulmonary services. Rather than hiring adequate ancillary staff to perform vital patient care services, management expects RNs, who are already understaffed, to perform these services, despite the fact that doing so takes them away from their primary patient care responsibilities. For example, management has refused to hire adequate numbers of phlebotomists, resulting in serious delays in blood draws and lab reports. During the day there is a shortage of phlebotomists on staff and on night shift, there are no phle- botomists, which means that critical blood tests cannot be delivered in a timely way. To attain safe staffing at the Cincinnati VA, RNs are recommending: • An additional six to eight RNs on every inpatient unit. • An additional nine PACT teams and two float teams to address the critical staff shortage in primary care clinics. • Additional staff in many specialty clin- ics such as cardiology, pulmonary, dermatol- ogy, and ophthalmology. • An increase in RN staff at residential facilities, including the Fort Thomas CLC, where current staffing levels provide only one RN in charge of care for 46 patients. • An increase in staff that are certified in the proper cleaning and sterilizing of surgi- cal equipment. Nurses are also calling on the Cincinnati VA administration to take immediate action to rectify the following problems: • Inadequate and malfunctioning supplies and equipment, including IV pumps, shower chairs, patient lift equipment, hospital beds, IV fluids, anesthesia, and other medications. • Outdated and ineffective patient record and data processing software and computers. • Inadequate sanitation and housekeep- ing services in the medical facilities, includ- ing the operating room. • Addressing the high turnover rate among RNs and other employees in 2014, that places less experienced staff at the bedside, further adding to the decline in veterans care. "All our efforts to communicate our concerns regarding these patient safety issues to management and other VA officials have been rebuffed," said Mike Brooks, RN. "I'm embarrassed to say that the safety of our veteran patients continues to be at risk at this facility." —Staff report J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5 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 N A T I O N A L N U R S E 5 Cincinnati VA RNs picket for better staffing, resources Nurses say care of veterans is compromised

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