Workplace violence prevention

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Amber Smigiel
(c) 651-202-0845
amber.smigiel@mnnurses.org

Lauren Bloomquist
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.bloomquist@mnnurses.org

 
The plan is in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and could be counter to the Minnesota Nurse Practice Act
… Read more about: Nurses from Allina’s Abbott Northwestern Hospital release statement on new unsafe patient admissions plan, send cease-and-desist to management  »

 
(St. Paul) – July 3, 2024 – Nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) are releasing a statement about their concerns regarding a new patient admissions plan that Allina’s Abbott Northwestern Hospital plans to begin on July 11, 2024. The hospital announced they will implement a “15 Minutes to Comfort Plan” that unilaterally seizes the authority of charge nurses to determine the number of patients a unit can safely care for and allows management to force patients onto unprepared units.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Amber Smigiel
(c) 651-202-0845
amber.smigiel@mnnurses.orgLauren Bloomquist
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.bloomquist@mnnurses.org

Hospital has the highest adverse health events in Minnesota, recently fined for workplace violence prevention violation 

(St. Paul) – June 22, 2024 – Nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) are fighting for safer staffing at Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) as the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reports the hospital had the highest number of adverse health events in the state last year. The hospital was also recently fined by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry’s Occupational Safety and Health Division (MNOSHD) for failing to provide an effective workplace violence program to protect employees.
… Read more about: Nurses fight for safer staffing as adverse health events, workplace violence incidences continue to rise at Hennepin County Medical Center  »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurse staffing bill, designed to address retention and patient care, moving forward in both House and Senate health omnibus bills 
(St. Paul) – April 4, 2023 – Nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) and Senator Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul) today celebrated the inclusion of the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act (SF 1561, HF 1700) in the Senate Health and Human Services omnibus bill advanced by the committee today
… Read more about: Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act advances at State Capitol  ».

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org
More than half of nurses are considering leaving the bedside, citing understaffing as a top concern
Legislation aims to retain nurses, protect safe patient care and hold hospital CEOs accountable

WATCH: Watch video of this morning’s news conference

(St. Paul) – February 13, 2023 – Minnesota nurses today joined bipartisan state legislators to introduce the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act (SF1561), a bill to solve the crisis of short-staffing, retention, and patient care in Minnesota hospitals.
… Read more about: Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act will solve retention and care crisis in Minnesota hospitals       »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

In new survey of Hennepin nurses, 81 percent believe patient safety may be at risk

(St. Paul) – August 10, 2022 – A new survey of Hennepin Healthcare nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association highlights rising levels of violence against nurses and patients and identifies under-staffing and unresponsive management as the top barriers to reporting and resolving the problem. In the report, 97 percent of nurses observed workplace violence or harassment in the last two years, but just over half of respondents had reported these incidents to their employer.
… Read more about: Hennepin Healthcare nurses report rising violence against nurses and patients, cite under-staffing, unresponsive management as barriers in new survey  »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Contact: Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

Amber Smigiel
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
amber.smigiel@mnnurses.org

February 9, 2021 (St. Paul) –

“Minnesota Nurses are again shocked and saddened by the news of another incident of workplace violence at a healthcare facility in the state. As caretakers of victims of gunshots and other violent injuries, nurses and healthcare workers are acutely aware that violence could easily come to the doors of their workplace too. Seeing other workers become victims shakes any hospital worker to their core.
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Statement on Workplace Violence at Buffalo Clinic  »

by Jackie Russell, RN, JD

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.
… Read more about: Nursing Practice and Education Commission Focuses on Workplace Violence  »

nurse workplace violence

By Jackie Russell, RN JD

Nursing Practice and Regulatory Affairs Specialist

and

Carrie Mortrud, RN

Nurse Staffing Specialist

“You need to work more efficiently!”

“You need to work smarter!”

“You need to work overtime!”

 

It’s called blaming the victim and all are highly inappropriate and unacceptable employer responses following an assault. Victim blaming is a poor defense. In fact, there is no good defense for assault. No excuses either.

The employer must stop blaming the employee-victim for an assault. The employer must take responsibility for their employees’ safety.
… Read more about: STOP VICTIM SHAMING! STOP BLAMING THE EMPLOYEES!  »

Members of three unions plan informational picket May 29


MNA Contact:  Barb Brady
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org

MAPE Contact: Ashley Erickson
(o) 651-621-2638
(c) 507-450-5511
aerickson@mape.org

St. Paul) – May 26, 2019 – The recent attack that left an Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center nurse severely injured and hospitalized has prompted employees from three unions to call for immediate measures to improve safety for workers, patients, and visitors.

MNA, AFSCME, and MAPE members are picketing on May 29 outside the hospital to shine a spotlight on the safety crisis and the hospital’s failure to install security measures.
… Read more about: Press Release: Anoka Treatment Center Staff Picket Over Recent Violent Attack, Unsafe Conditions  »

nurse workplace violence

By Jackie Russell, RN JD

Nursing Practice and Regulatory Affairs Specialist

 

On the CDC website there is a Workplace Violence Prevention for Nurses Course (CDC Course No. WB2908–NIOSH Pub. No. 2013-155). It’s free. It’s interactive. (here’s the link to attend:  https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/violence/training_nurses.html) It’s designed to “help healthcare workers better understand the scope and nature of violence in the workplace.” And it hasn’t been updated since 2016 (last reviewed, 2017).

If you take the course, you will learn the definition, types, and prevalence of violence; workplace violence consequences; risk factors for type II and III violence; prevention strategies for organizations; prevention strategies for nurses; and a post event response.
… Read more about: What Is Workplace Violence Prevention?  »