National Nurses United

O C T O B E R | N O V E M B E R | D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 7 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 11 NATIONAL N urses once again topped the Gallup Poll's annual ranking of how Americans view 22 major professions with 82 percent of the public rating their honesty and ethical stan- dards as "high" or "very high." Nurses have ranked first for 16 consecutive years and every year except for one in the 19 years that Gallup has surveyed public opinion on what profession is most trusted. "Nurses are duty bound to advocate for our patients, and we know, year after year, when it is reflected that we are the most trusted profession, that our patients, their families, and the public can feel the depth of our commitment," said Jean Ross, RN and copresident of National Nurses United (NNU). "We will always stand up for our patients." To that end, in 2017, National Nurses United members have led the fight for single payer, guaranteed Medicare for all by cham- pioning bills in several states, including California's seminal fight for S.B. 562, the Healthy California Act. "Nurses know that the conditions our patients suffer from at the bedside are often the end result of illnesses and injuries that begin elsewhere, in their everyday lives," said Roseann DeMoro, executive director of NNU. "So the nurses' values of caring, compassion, and community guide us to fight for public health and safety at the bedside, and also out in the world." This past year, NNU nurses stood stronger than ever to speak out on the climate crisis, especially given the resulting severity and frequency of disasters, such as Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, as well as the wildfires along the West Coast. NNU's disaster relief program, the RN Response Network, sent nurses in late August and September to provide first aid in Houston, and in October to Puerto Rico. Upon returning home, the Puerto Rico nurse volunteers continued their patient advocacy by testifying to Congress regarding the lack of federal government response they had witnessed in Puerto Rico, and the deadly health conditions faced by patients there. "We are so proud of our brave nurses who left their own homes and families to go help patients and their RN colleagues in other states and countries," said Bonnie Castillo, RN, associate executive director of CNA/ NNOC. "And we are doubly proud that these working bedside nurses came back from the night- marish conditions they witnessed in Puerto Rico and took it upon themselves to speak out at the highest levels of power, to hold our representatives account- able for not leaving the people of Puerto Rico to die." —Staff report DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA M ore than 200 registered nurses at Providence Hospital in Washington, D.C. in early December ratified a new three-year contract that will ensure the recruitment and retention of the most experienced nurses. Major contract highlights include: economic gains: According to nurses, Provi- dence wages were formerly among the lowest compensated in the surrounding area, resulting in an exodus of RNs to other facilities and trou- ble hiring highly skilled new nurses. The new contract includes pay increases of up to 20 percent over the three years of the agreement. improved equity: The new wage scale also gives nurses credit for all their years of experience in nursing, both foreign and domestic, leading to improved recruit- ment and retention of experienced RNs. More time for nurses to discuss patient care issues: The professional practice committee (PPC), comprising nurse leaders from units throughout the hospital, meets to monitor and resolve patient care issues. The new contract allows nurses more time to dedi- cate to the PPC. No benefit takeaways: Providence RNs maintained their benefit package with no takeaways. "We are so proud that Providence nurses stood together to achieve this contract, which will enable Providence Hospital to recruit and, more importantly, retain highly skilled RNs, so that we can improve our staffing and provide excellent care to our community," said Kelly Fields, RN. "It's a big win for our patients." —Staff report rNs again ranked most honest profession Providence nurses win big gains in new contract

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