MNA and SEIU Alarmed by Shortsighted Hospital Cuts to Bethesda and St. Joe's (Page 28)

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

October 5, 2020 (St. Paul) – As COVID infections are on the rise, MHealth Fairview is closing the one COVID specialty hospital in the area as well as critically necessary community clinics and other services at St. Joseph’s hospital.  Shutting down clinics and restricting services does not improve access to healthcare. This is the epitome of healthcare injustice for both the community and the MHealth Fairview workforce.

MHealth Fairview has consistently attempted to hide their plans for healthcare in St. Paul and this is yet another example.  Executives with little to no ties to the community and those who are the furthest away from actually providing direct care have continued to refuse transparency in their efforts to strip healthcare accessibility from our communities, including the closures of Bethesda and St. Joe’s.  Community or worker input came only after a memo was leaked about their plans and was quickly shelved when the COVID crisis began. Now they are manipulating the tragedy of COVID as a cover to justify the elimination of vital healthcare services to the St. Paul community.  SEIU Healthcare Minnesota President Jamie Gulley, who represents 200 healthcare staff between the two facilities, responded, “The damage that these moves will have to our community and state will be insurmountable.  This move is incredibly shortsighted, and we know it will have long-lasting effects to both healthcare workers and patients. Our state cannot afford to have this plan move forward without a much deeper analysis on the impact to our community.”

MNA Executive Director Rose Roach also responded by saying, “It is unthinkable that an urban center like St. Paul stands to lose so many patient services at once. With the recent announcement by Children’s Hospitals, St. Paul families will lose operating rooms, pediatric ICUs, cardiac, epilepsy, chemical dependency, and diabetic services. The loss of resources will again force patients, especially among communities of color, to have to travel to healthcare, instead of finding it available to them. This is not health equity. This is tragic.”

Both SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and MNA are calling on Governor Walz and elected officials to put a freeze to the rapidly approaching closures until community members have a real chance to weigh in and an assessment of how this will impact St. Paul and the state is completed and shared with the community.

On:
In: Hospitals, Press Releases

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

October 5, 2020 (St. Paul) – As COVID infections are on the rise, MHealth Fairview is closing the one COVID specialty hospital in the area as well as critically necessary community clinics and other services at St. Joseph’s hospital.  Shutting down clinics and restricting services does not improve access to healthcare. This is the epitome of healthcare injustice for both the community and the MHealth Fairview workforce.

MHealth Fairview has consistently attempted to hide their plans for healthcare in St.
… Read more about: MNA and SEIU Alarmed by Shortsighted Hospital Cuts to Bethesda and St. Joe’s  »

On:
In: Continuing Education, Education, Home healthcare, Nurse education

By Geri Katz

MNA Manager of Practice, Education and Special Projects

 

MNA’s Annual Convention always includes a day of education for nurses that covers topics from nursing practice, building power in the workplace, and healthcare policy. With the 2020 Convention occurring online, the MNA Nursing Practice and Education Commission decided to offer online classes throughout the month of October, rather than just one day. Commissioners hope the MNA Convention will broaden access to these classes regardless of your work schedule, delegate status, and ability to travel.

Now nurses who are not convention delegates and nurses anywhere in the region can attend these free classes, many of which come with Contact Hours.
… Read more about: Back to School with MNA: October Online Education  »

On:
In: Elections, Politics

The 2020 elections are some of the most important in American history, particularly so since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, voters do not need to risk their safety to make their voices heard at the ballot box. In Minnesota, voters can easily vote from home by following a few simple steps.

Complete the 2020 Minnesota Absentee Ballot Application online at www.mnvotes.org or return the absentee ballot application to your county election office by mail, fax, or email. Once the application is submitted, election officials will send you the election materials starting on Friday, September 18.

It is important that you promptly fill out your ballot and get it in the mail because it needs to be received by Election Day on November 3.
… Read more about: Vote safely by mail in Minnesota  »

On:
In: Press Releases

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

​
(Bismarck) – August 28, 2020 – After more than 30 hours of negotiations this week, MNA nurses reached a tentative agreement early Wednesday morning on a first contract with CHI St. Alexius Health Bismarck Medical Center. Nurses had more than 20 bargaining sessions with hospital management to reach an agreement on staffing, workplace violence protections, and a defined wage scale that will help retain nurses in Bismarck.

“We are happy to be done with this process and use what we’ve bargained to continue caring for our patients,” said Rachel Heintz, RN at St.
… Read more about: Bismarck Nurses Reach Agreement on Contract with CHI St. Alexius Health  »

On:
In: Racial Diversity, Racism

At the August meeting of the MNA Board of Directors, several MNA members presented this Statement of Solidarity from White Nurses which recognizes, “For centuries, non-white people globally have resisted racism and fought for their sovereignty.” It further states, “As white nurses, we have been complicit in racism through willful ignorance, microaggressions, silence, and an inability to discuss and understand whiteness and its role in upholding intentional systems of power that benefit white people.”

The Board unanimously voted in favor of adopting this statement and urges other white nurses to join them by signing their names in support.

 



 
… Read more about: Sign the MNA Statement of Solidarity from White Nurses  »

On:
In: Press Releases

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

August 20, 2020 (St. Paul) – The Board of Directors of the Minnesota Nurses Association has approved a second round of endorsements for state legislative candidates, based on candidate questionnaires and recommendations by nurse members on various screening committees.

“Nurses continue to feel the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic as they balance providing excellent patient care while working in inadequate conditions without the proper PPE,” said MNA President Mary C.
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Endorse Candidates for Minnesota Legislature  »

On:
In: Health Care Reform

MNA nurses have been stretched thin this during this pandemic. From employers failing to provide PPE or adequate levels of PPE, nurses know that they must take their advocacy beyond the bedside and to the public. Concurrently, nurses are witnessing the failures of our broken healthcare system in terms of racial disparities and access to care for many of Minnesota’s low-income residents. On Wednesday, August 5th, Bethesda hospital RN, Stella Obadiya, made the case in front of the Saint Paul City Council to support a resolution calling for the enactment of the Minnesota Health Plan and Medicare for All.

Bethesda and St. Joe’s were facing potential closure prior to the start of the pandemic.
… Read more about: St. Paul Passes Resolution for the MN Health Plan and Medicare for All Act  »

On:
In: Press Releases

Media Advisory

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

July 27, 2020 (St. Paul) – Virginia nurses working for Essentia have filed the required ten-day notice of intent to hold an informational picket August 3 to alert patients they continue to work without a contract that respects their work. Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association have been without a contract since August 1, 2019. They have engaged in good faith bargaining with negotiators of the Virginia hospital, but management continues to stall and demand concessions from workers.
… Read more about: MNA Nurses to Picket Virginia Hospital Over Contract  »

On:
In: Uncategorized

Nurses and voters across Minnesota will have the opportunity to exercise their right to vote on two occasions in the coming months. Minnesota’s primary election day is on Tuesday, August 11 for state and some municipal races. In this election, voters will choose which candidates will end up on the ballot in the November election.

Polls will be open if you choose to vote in-person; although with COVID-19, many officials are encouraging voters to request an absentee ballot and vote by mail. To vote by mail, you will need to request that an absentee ballot be mailed to you. You do not need to be registered to vote to apply.
… Read more about: Minnesota’s primary election day is August 11  »

On:
In: Press Releases

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

July 22, 2020 (St. Paul) – The Board of Directors of the Minnesota Nurses Association has voted to approve the first round of endorsements for legislative candidates, based on candidate questionnaires and recommendations by nurse members on various screening committees. MNA asked candidates to identify their positions on multiple issues important to bedside nurses, like appropriate staffing levels in hospitals, adequate PPE supplies, and reforming the current health care system. 
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Endorse Candidates for Minnesota Legislature  »