Union Rights = Advocacy Rights: Convention 2018 (Page 38)

By Barb Brady

Barb Brady
Barb Brady
MNA Communications Specialist

MNA Communications Specialist

What do you get when you take several hundred nurses and mix in fun, learning, union solidarity, and inspiration? The 2018 MNA Convention and House of Delegates!  It’s Oct. 5-8 at the Radisson Blu in downtown Minneapolis.  MNA nurses will join together to learn about issues important to nurses, network, and set MNA’s course for the next year.

A special bonus this year: National Nurses United is bringing nurses from throughout the country to Minnesota for their national convention at the same time and place.  It’s a great opportunity to connect with nurses from other states in addition to meeting or re-uniting with MNA members!  NNU and MNA nurses will share education, socializing, and door-knocking to urge area residents to support pro-nurse candidates in the November Elections.

The theme running throughout the four days is Union Rights = Advocacy Rights. Nurses know union membership enables them to advocate for their patients and the nursing profession.

Registration is now open – sign up today!

Here are some of the education sessions planned for you:

  • Revenge of the Nerds: How Science and Data Win Elections
  • Upending Power Structures: What Women in Union Leadership Can Learn from the #MeToo Movement
  • Nursing in a New Era: Learning And Applying Structural Competency
  • Collective Action as a Stress Relief Measure
  • Everything You Wanted to Know About Nursing, But Were Afraid to Ask
  • RN Values in Action.

Nurses will come together as delegates during the House of Delegates to guide the union’s course for the next year. As a democratically run union, members vote and have a say in MNA’s priorities and actions.

Special events:

Honors & Awards, Banquet, October 7: Be sure to attend the Honors & Awards Banquet to honor some of the outstanding nurses and allies who go above and beyond for patients and the nursing profession.

There’s still time to nominate your unsung heroes for an award: you have until July 1 to submit your nomination to MNA. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to shine a light on those who deserve special thanks!

October 6: NNU and MNA nurses will join together to go door to door to have conversations with voters about the need for healthcare for all and the importance of voting in the November elections. Bring your sneakers and show your passion for patients and nursing! We will train you on best practices and pair you up so you won’t be alone!

Special entertainment, October 6: Enjoy the humor of two Minnesota comedians to end your day on a bright note. Mary Mack and  Tommy Ryman are popular comedians on national television, radio, podcasts, and comedy clubs throughout the Midwest and the U.S.

Mary Mack

Tommy Ryman

If you’d like to submit a proposed bylaw or resolution change for the House of Delegates to consider, you can find the Call for Resolutions and Bylaws on the Forms page of the Member Center on MNA’s website.

The deadline is July 15.

Check out the special insert in this edition of Accent for more details – and to register. You can also register in the Events section of MNA’s website at www.mnnurses.org.

See you in October!

On:
In: Home, Minnesota Nurses Association, National Nurses United, Nurses

By Barb Brady

MNA Communications Specialist

What do you get when you take several hundred nurses and mix in fun, learning, union solidarity, and inspiration? The 2018 MNA Convention and House of Delegates!  It’s Oct. 5-8 at the Radisson Blu in downtown Minneapolis.  MNA nurses will join together to learn about issues important to nurses, network, and set MNA’s course for the next year.

A special bonus this year: National Nurses United is bringing nurses from throughout the country to Minnesota for their national convention at the same time and place.  It’s a great opportunity to connect with nurses from other states in addition to meeting or re-uniting with MNA members! 
… Read more about: Union Rights = Advocacy Rights: Convention 2018  »

On:
In: Activism, Health Care Reform, Home, Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Barb Brady
(office) 651-414-2849
(cell) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org

Rick Fuentes
(office) 651-414-2863
(cell) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

(Minneapolis) – June 21, 2018 – Hundreds of activists from throughout the U.S. are marching for healthcare that serves patients, not insurance company profits, in downtown Minneapolis on June 22.

They are calling on the U.S. to replace the current broken healthcare system with improved and expanded Medicare for All, which would ensure all Americans receive quality, affordable healthcare.

The march begins outside the Radisson Blu at 35 S 7th St.
… Read more about: Press Release: Activists March for Guaranteed Healthcare in Downtown Minneapolis June 22  »

On:
In: Home, Politics, Press Releases

For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Contact: Barbara Brady
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org
 
Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

(Mankato) – June 20, 2018 – The Minnesota Nurses Association condemn the continued “Zero Tolerance” policy of the Trump Administration that has incarcerated immigrant children at the US border.  The MNA Board of Directors issued a resolution today that President Donald Trump’s Executive Order continues to violate federal law and cause severe and irreparable harm to these children.

“As nurses, we cannot ignore the health implications of Trump’s immigration policies,” said Mary C.
… Read more about: Press Release: MNA Nurses Condemn Trump Policy of Separation of Immigrant Children  »

On:
In: Activism, Affordable Care Act, Home, Insurance, Nurses, Single Payer

By Tara Fugate

MNA Strategic Researcher

 

This Friday, June 22nd, nurses and hundreds of progressive activists from across the country are gathering in Minneapolis to support a simple, fair, and universal healthcare reform of the American healthcare system. Join MNA nurses and others in supporting an improved and expanded Medicare for All system by attending the March for Guaranteed Healthcare.

Healthcare is an undeniable basic need for every American. Yet, many still lack access to affordable care. Millions of Americans are uninsured or underinsured and make the challenging decision to delay or skip seeking care in order to avoid overwhelming medical debt.
… Read more about: March for Guaranteed Healthcare  »

On:
In: Home, Nurses, Unions

By Megan Gavin

MNA Education Specialist

Somebody described an excellent MNA chairperson like an octopus with arms everywhere reaching out to nurses and solving problems. As the highest level of MNA leadership within facilities, the MNA chairperson is the lifeblood of our organization. While MNA chairs do a hundred things before breakfast, their most important role is to ensure representation of bargaining unit members. Chairs facilitate the LMC process, negotiating with management throughout the duration of the contract. When members have complaints or concerns, it’s the chair who will hear first; it’s the chair who bears the brunt of frustrations; and they also lend a shoulder to cry on while listening to a nurse’s heart-breaking circumstances.
… Read more about: The State of the Union: MNA Chair Leadership Retreat  »

On:
In: Activism, Governor, Home, Nurse Compact, Politics

By Laura Sayles

MNA Government Affairs Specialist

Just a day after the 2018 Session ended, it’s still hard to know the final outcome of Session. The Governor has 14 days to decide whether to sign or veto a variety of bills: the omnibus budget bill, a second tax bill that also contains some money for school safety, the bonding bill, and the pension bill are among those that are waiting for Dayton to take action.

While it may feel like a lot of legislating takes place behind closed doors and late at night, we already know that the voices of the citizens of Minnesota made a difference in ensuring that the Interstate Nurse Licensure Compact and the Medicaid Work Requirements bill did not pass this Session.
… Read more about: Your Voice Matters  »

On:
In: Action, Board of Nursing, Home, Nurses, Unsafe Staffing

By Carrie Mortrud, RN

MNA Policy Project Specialist

Imagine this scenario.

You arrive at work at 3 p.m. and receive your 4-patient assignment. You begin reading about your patients prior to receiving report from the nurses on the day shift who cared for them before you. From the patient Kardex’s and flow sheets (I just dated myself) it seems as though this 4-patient assignment might be too much, unsafe, unrealistic, and impossible to progress the plan of care for the patients. Still, you reserve judgement until you hear from the nurses who cared for them during the day.

Patient 1 is heavy.
… Read more about: Whose decision is it anyway?  »

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In: Home, Hospitals, Member Blog, Nurses

 

By Julie Anderson, RN

GAC Commissioner

As nurses, we nurture, heal, care, and advocate—unless we’re talking about ourselves. We continually ignore the warnings of “put your own oxygen mask on before you apply someone else’s.”  We run trauma rooms while barely breaking a sweat. We face hostile patients, family, and coworkers and calmly de-escalate, redirect, and reassure everyone with a smile on our faces.  Still, what is the cost of continually putting others’ needs before your own?  Oftentimes going from one crisis to another barely able to take a deep breath, let alone debrief on what just happened and how it will affect us later on.
… Read more about: Nurses Need Care Too  »

On:
In: Home, Legislative Policy, Single Payer

By Jon Tollefson

MNA Government Relations Specialist

 

As the legislative session enters its final two weeks, nurses can be frustrated with profound level of inaction these past few months at the State Capitol. The legislature had the opportunity to open MinnesotaCare to anyone who can’t access health insurance through their employer or spouse. Over 100,000 Minnesotans buy their insurance on the “individual market” through MNsure, but skyrocketing premiums and high deductibles have made that unaffordable for many. Instead of opening up MinnesotaCare last year to anyone who needed it, the legislature gave the insurance industry an almost $1 billion giveaway in taxpayer funds.
… Read more about: Missed Opportunities  »

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In: Activism, Home, Legislative Policy, Member Blog, Student Nurses

By Sadie Cross, RN

Mercy Hospital, Moose Lake

Student, Bemidji State University

As a baccalaureate student from Bemidji State University and an MNA member, I participated in the April 10 Student Nurses Day on the Hill as a listener, learner, critic, and advocate.

I must admit I was initially disappointed when the March MNA Nurses Day on the Hill was canceled due to weather, but now I can say I’m thankful my first experience at an MNA event was with other students.

I felt the morning session was a good introduction to MNA and the benefits of union membership and advocating for the nursing profession, which many nursing students may not be very familiar with.
… Read more about: Student Day on the Hill reignites passion to loosen grip of ignorance and inequality  »