Nurses (Page 20)

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In: Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Politics, Unsafe Staffing

Standards of Care Campaign

Yesterday, Governor Dayton signed HF588/SF471 into law after it passed its final hurdle on the first day of Nurses Week when the House took a last procedural vote on Monday.  The bill requires the Department of Health to conduct a thorough study of the correlation between nurse staffing and patient health outcomes, and mandates every Minnesota hospital to publicly report their staffing plans.

When the study is complete, we will have Minnesota-specific data to underscore the stories nurses have been telling legislators for years: that unsafe staffing is a serious problem in Minnesota hospitals. Our ultimate goal is still a minimum standard of care for patient assignments in Minnesota.
… Read more about: MNA Legislative Update, May 10, 2013  »

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In: Health Care Reform, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Minnesota Nurses Association, National Nurses United, Nurses, Nursing, Patient Safety, Uncategorized, Unsafe Staffing

Nurses-Week

NOTES ON NURSING

HHS Secretary Sebelius Hails Nurses   National Nurses Week gives us a chance to recognize the contribution of the health care providers at the heart of our health care system.  Every day, nurses provide leadership, innovation and advocacy to meet the health care needs of Americans.

Advanced Nurses Lower Costs, Improve Care   Studies find that Advanced Practice Registered Nurses who provide preventive  care are as effective as primary-care physicians in accuracy of diagnosis and  prescription.

LABOR UPDATES

The Labor Market Won’t Be Healthy Until People Feel Like they Can Quit Their Jobs  The unemployment rate may be falling and the number of jobs rising.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, May 8, 2013: Kaiser battle=sign of vibrant HC unions  »

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In: Bargaining, Hospitals, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Unsafe Staffing

Next time, they’ll rent a bigger room.  Maybe a movie theater.

More than 60 nurses from the Mayo Clinic Health System-Mankato showed up for trainings and organizing planning meetings to prepare for negotiations with management later this month.

Nurses showed up over two days to sign upwork with groups of 10 nurses to gather input and organize actions in the lead up to their upcoming contract negotiations through Member Action Teams (MAT).

MAT members will also be a voice of their colleagues upwards through the bargaining team so those at the table understand what’s most important for nurses in their next contract.   
… Read more about: Mankato Nurses Way Ahead in Organizing  »

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In: Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Patient Safety, Politics, Unsafe Staffing

 

Standards of Care/Staffing Disclosure Act

The Standards of Care/Staffing Disclosure Act (SF471/HF588), creating a Department of Health study of the correlation between nurse staffing and patient outcomes and requiring public reporting of hospital staffing, passed the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, and passed the full Senate on Thursday. Thanks to our Senate author, Sen. Jeff Hayden (DFL-Minneapolis), for his work on the bill. The bill will next head back to the House for a final procedural vote, and then to the Governor whom is expected to sign the bill into law.
… Read more about: MNA Legislative Update May 3, 2013  »

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In: Activism, Labor Unions, Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Organizing, Uncategorized

LABOR UPDATES

CEO Pay Gap Up 1000% Since 1950    Today Fortune 500 CEOs make 204 times regular workers on average, Bloomberg found. The ratio is up from 120-to-1 in 2000, 42-to-1 in 1980 and 20-to-1 in 1950.

Worldwide May Day Rallies Thousands of low-paid workers are rallying in the streets on May Day to demand better pay and improved working conditions a week after a Bangladesh building collapse that was a grim reminder of how lax safety regulations make work a danger in poor countries.

Health Care Dominates Highest Paying Jobs (no surprise:  nurses excluded) in America   Anesthesiologists top the list with average annual pay of $232,830 as of 2012, the latest year for which official figures are available from the U.S.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, May 1, 2013: May Day!  »

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In: Health Care Reform, Healthcare, Labor Unions, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Patient Safety

NOTES ON NURSING

Successful Nurse-Intensive Chronic Disease Management Experiment in Jeopardy    But Health Quality Partners, with its emphasis on continuous nurse-to-patient contact, did work. Of the 15 programs, four improved patient outcomes without increasing costs. Only HQP improved patient outcomes while cutting costs.

HEALTH CARE

Austerity is Hurting Our Health    Austerity is having a devastating effect on health in Europe and North America, driving suicide, depression and infectious diseases and reducing access to medicines and care, researchers said on Monday.

Uninsured Population Swells    About 84 million were uninsured or underinsured, 3 million more than when the 2010 health law was signed and 20 million more than in 2003.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, April 29, 2013: Successful program=funding cuts  »

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In: Bargaining, Hospitals, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses

The bargaining team for HealthEast’s Home Care nurses got a boost from MNA’s E & GW Commissioners who joined them at the table on Wednesday.  The Commissioners came to show the 68-member bargaining unit and management that MNA’s 20,000 members are standing with them in their fight to achieve a first contract.

After observing negotiations over this one particular morning, it became apparent to commissioners that HealthEast administrators are playing games in the talks and hiding behind their attorney to avoid working out a fair contract.  Jennifer Michelson, chair of the E & GW Commission, said administration is disrespecting HealthEast Home Care nurses by refusing to agree to basic provisions that are part of every union contract.
… Read more about: HealthEast Home Care nurses get support in quest for contract  »

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In: Bargaining, Duluth Bargaining, Hospitals, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Unsafe Staffing

St. Luke’s nurses approved a new contract they won after coming to a one-day, wage-only focused negotiations showing they were ready to bargain together after three years of strong member engagement.   The strength of the nurses was apparent even at breakfast.

A hearty “Good morning!” was echoed more than 150 times as Duluth nurses turned out in force in the early morning to welcome St. Luke’s Hospital negotiators to the bargaining table.  They saw nurses from St. Luke’s and from competitor Essentia St. Mary’s as well as their friends, families, fellow union members, and even kids in an impressive display of red filling the hotel hallways. 
… Read more about: Show of Strength in Duluth Wins Nurses New Contract  »

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In: Health Care Reform, Healthcare, Hospitals, Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, National Nurses United, Nurses, Nursing, Unsafe Staffing

NOTES ON NURSING

Nurses Fight State by State for Minimum Staffing Laws   Legislatures in at least seven states and the District of Columbia are trying to answer that question as they debate bills that would require hospitals to have a minimum number of nurses on staff at all times.

Ruling:  MI Hospital Cheated Nurses Out of Proper Pay   McLaren Lapeer Region improperly cut the wages of 51 registered nurses and must pay them tens of thousands of dollars in back pay, an arbitrator has ruled.

LABOR UPDATES

Minnesota’s Pay Equity Laws Have Bridged Gap for Women   Fifty years after Congress passed the Equal Pay Act, women still make less than men.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, April 24, 2013: CA adjusting well with state-mandated RN staffing levels  »

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In: Health Care Reform, Healthcare, Labor Unions, Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Nursing

NOTES ON NURSING

Boston Nurses Talk of Caring for Wounded and Families of Marathon Bombing    The screams and cries of bloody marathon bombing victims still haunt the nurses who treated them one week ago. They did their jobs as they were trained to do, putting their own fears in a box during their 12-hour shifts so they could better comfort their patients.

HEALTH CARE

Seniors Get Hung Up in Health Care Scams   Many of the fraudsters seem to be preying on the public’s confusion over the massive changes taking place in the nation’s health care system.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, April 22, 2013: Boston RNs talk; The jobless trap  »