Central MA Nurses Outraged Over Patient Care Quality in Hospitals

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Nicholas Handy, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

Another set of nurses in Central Massachusetts has decided to work with the Massachusetts Nurses Association, unionizing with the MNA after a recent vote.

In the wake of a poor economy and a wealth of changes to the health industry, the nurses at Athol Hospital have decided to unionize, to not only give themselves a voice in the hospital, but also to make sure that their patients are properly cared for.

“Our goal in forming a union at Athol was first and foremost to ensure that our patients are given the best care possible,” said Denise Raymond, an emergency department nurse at Athol Hospital and a member of the organizing committee. “We made this decision with the best interests of this community and this hospital in mind. As registered nurses we are responsible for the care we provide to our patients and now for the first time we will have a say in how we deliver that care.”

With the election settled, the nurses will now begin to form a local committee, where the nurses will elect members to their bargaining committee and reach out to others in the hospital to determine which areas will be a priority for their first contract.

Central MA Issues

While Athol Hospital nurses are working to unionize, other nurses throughout Central Massachusetts are currently working with the MNA to try to alleviate problems that are leading to unsafe patient conditions in their respective hospitals.

There hasn’t been a lot of success as of late, even though there has recently been a letter of concern delivered to the UMass Memorial system, asking for change. Additionally, Leominster Hospital nurses sent a petition to their hospital CEO. Although initially receptive to meeting, the hospital’s CEO has since turned down the nurses.

The one spot of good news for the nurses of Central MA is that a new law will come into effect this week, one that will ensure safe patient limits in hospitals for one specific unit.

“The good news is that there is the new law going into effect this week setting safe patient standards,” said David Schildmeier, Director of Public Communications at the Massachusetts Nurses Association. “This law helps set a standard for ICU nurses where they will only be required to take care of one patient, two if it is deemed safe. While we are still working to get this passed in all segments of the hospital, we are happy that ICU nurses will no longer need to practice in unsafe conditions for their patients.”

Hospitals Respond

While the nurses have spent much time to bring their concerns to light both to the public and to upper management, many local area hospitals have responded by saying that they understand the concerns of the nurses, but they must be willing to adapt.

“As health care changes, so must the jobs we all do. We all need to be prepared to reinvent ourselves to meet the changing needs of our patients,” said UMass Memorial CEO Eric Dickson in a blog post. “I recognize that a sense of employment security is a primary concern of all of you. As we continue our restructuring efforts, I will do my very best to keep people who want to stay with UMass Memorial employed with us as long as you are willing to reinvent yourself and shift between jobs or change how you do your current work to meet the changing needs of our patients.”

The upper management at the hospitals have clearly heard the concerns of the nurses, but for whatever reason have still decided to move forward with staff cuts and other plans that nurses have deemed detrimental to safe patient care.

“Health Alliance Hospital recognizes and values the contributions of our nurses and all of our caregivers in providing the outstanding care that we are recognized for both locally and nationally,” said Health Alliance Hospital in a statement. “We are committed to maintaining appropriate staffing levels to provide the high level of care that our patients need, expect and deserve every day.”

Related Slideshow: Patient Care Quality Issues in Central MA Hospitals

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Athol Hospital

Issue at Hand: In the wake of a changing medical field, the nurses are unionizing with the MNA to have a voice in their hospital in regards to patient care.

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Leominster Hospital

Issue at Hand: The nurses delivered a petition to the hospital's CEO Deborah Weymouth asking to meet about concerns regarding cutting staff and merging the pediatric, labor and delivery, and maternity units. After initially agreeing to meet, Weymouth later refused and announced plans to press on with the proposed cuts and merger.

“We are shocked by our CEOs total disregard for the nurses and patients at this hospital as demonstrated by her refusal to hear what we have to say about changes that will impact the safety of our patients. “said Natalie M. Pereira, a nurse at the hospital and chair of the nurses’ local bargaining unit with the Massachusetts Nurses Association/National Nurses United. “She is the CEO, the buck stops with her and so does the responsibility for the safety of every patient in this hospital. It is all too clear that she cares more about the bucks than the patients at this facility, which only strengthens nurses’ resolve to speak out about the dangers of this plan.”

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UMass Memorial: Memorial Campus

Issue at Hand: Nurses at the UMass Memorial's Memorial Campus have seen round after round of staffing cuts for not only nurses, but valuable support staff. They have also seen a closure of a medical floor, increased patient assignments, and the elimination of one-to-one sitters for high risk patients and the IV therapy team. Nurses have been ready to strike since 2013 and have cast a vote of no confidence in the Director of Nursing.

“These are the worst conditions at this hospital that I have seen since I began working here,” said Lynne Starbard, RN, Maternity Nurse at UMass Memorial Medical Center’s Memorial Campus and Co-Chair of the nurses local bargaining unit. “Dickson was a physician who came up in this system; my hope is that he realizes what he is doing to patients and nurses by continually cutting important programs and position.”

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UMass Memorial: University Campus

Issue at Hand: Nurses at UMass Memorial's University Campus share the grievances of the Memorial Campus, which include round after round of staffing cuts as well as the closure of a medical floor, increased patient assignments, and the elimination of one-to-one sitters for high risk patients and the IV therapy team.

“I think that conditions are actually getting worse,” said Ellen Smith, RN, Critical Care Nurse at UMass Memorial Medical Center’s University Campus and co-chair of the nurses local bargaining unit. “We met this morning – we have a staff meeting once a quarter – and we spoke about how unsafe the hospital is for patients; it’s absolutely crazy. We feel that our unit is unsafe; it isn’t safe for patients or nurses.”

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Marlborough Hospital

Issue at Hand: Nurses have been battling against staff layoffs and poor patient care condition. Nurses are particularly upset about cuts on the medical surgical floor, as well as the telemetry floor and the emergency department, causing nurses to care for as many as eight patients at one time. The hospital - in mid-August - hired a new Chief Nursing Officer but changes remain to be seen.

“The fact that they have hired a new chief nursing officer means nothing to us yet,” said David Schildmeier, Director of Public Communications with the Massachusetts Nurses Association. “If he is smart then he will immediately hire a number of nurses to benefit patient care. If he is hired and concerns of nurses aren’t addressed, then we will continue to fight and raise our concerns. The fact is this new hire needs to act more like a nurse than an executive or administrator.”