by Jackie Russell, RN, JD
MNA Nursing Practice and Regulatory Affairs Specialist
Nursing Practice and Regulatory Affairs Specialist
The Commission on Nursing Practice and Education (“NP&E”) met on September 19 at the MNA office in Saint Paul. At the meeting, NP&E created a workplace violence subcommittee charged with writing a position paper and FAQs about workplace violence prevention and policy. The subcommittee consists of NP&E’s Chair, Lynnetta Muehlhauser, and Commissioners Niki Gjere, Angela Oseland, and Mischelle Knipe. Also, working on the issue with MNA is Liesl Wolf, Doctor of Nursing Practice Candidate from the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire. Liesl will do a literature review focused on research around correlations between workplace violence and staffing, nurse fatigue, and nurses leaving the profession. She is also going to look at research about the adequacy/inadequacy of current interventions and legislation.
Is there a workplace violence encounter you would like to share? Email me at Jackie.Russell@mnnurses.org.
Did you know that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), besides being interested in work hazards such as extension cords and working fire extinguishers is also interested in your workplace violence reports? It’s true. In an early 2019 facility investigation, OSHA requested all workplace violence reports. So please, please be sure to fill out a Concern for Safe Staffing report (www.unsafeshift.org) if unsafe staffing resulted in workplace violence. Concern for Safe Staffing forms serve as important evidence of the seriousness and number of assaults, and helps build MNA’s case for better violence prevention and response strategies.
What would improve safety at your workplace?
A remarkable 2,500 nurses completed MNA’s survey on workplace violence as of the September meeting! Please take a few minutes to complete this very important survey on workplace violence against nurses. Consider the survey a contribution to ending workplace violence against nurses. Here’s the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5N6D6LH
In addition to workplace violence, NP&E discussed trends in nursing practice and National Nurses United’s campaign against the restructuring of healthcare and its detrimental impact on the nursing profession. NNU is in the early works of creating the campaign. Please stay tuned for further information on the campaign and how you can get involved.
NP&E discussed national benchmarking – the process by which a hospital compares its quality measures to similar hospitals and then makes staffing and other changes to get closer to the averageand its impact on nurse staffing. If your unit is already understaffed, national benchmarking has shown to cut nurse staffing even further.
Other topics included nurse management statements that “95% of nurses get breaks” (because nurses are not punching F8 at their facility), continued intimidation and bullying of nurses by hospitalleaders, and providing better training to nursing students.
Come to Convention in Duluth for our education on Workplace Violence! Anyone can come to the education sessions, even if you’re not a delegate to the House of Delegates. NP&E is donating two self-care gift baskets to the MNA Disaster Relief Fund silent auction; a self-help basket and a self-enlightenment basket. If you are attending convention, please stop by the NP&E table for a visit! [link]
Commission on Nursing Practice & Education Commissioners:
- Lynnetta Muehlhauser, RN, Chair from Abbott Northwestern.
- Deb Meyer, RN, BAN, Vice Chair. Retired, Worthington.
- Angela Oseland, RN from North Memorial Health Care
- Gladys Igbo, RN, MSN from Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
- Niki Gjere, MA, MS, RN, APRN, BC from Fairview Riverside Campus
- Sherri Lidholm, RN from Essentia Health- Deer River
- Kelly Perro, RN from United Hospital
- Mischelle Knipe, RN from Unity Hospital
- Shirley Martin, retired RN from Sanford Worthington