Video: Allina Nurses Picket United for a Hastings Contract (Page 65)

All Allina nurses are united in their support for fellow nurses at Regina Medical Center and want them to get a fair contract. Hastings nurses are first-rate and they deserve a contract that respects their experience and ensures patient safety and the continuity of care. Allina nurses from Buffalo and Thief River Falls joined nurses from United and RMC in an informational picket in St Paul.

Nurses from River Falls show up to picket with other Allina nurses at United Hospital. Bridget Nelson (kneeling), Kathy Bloom, Lori Morris, Ashley Greengard, Julie Schommer, Amy Hauenstein
Nurses from River Falls show up to picket with other Allina nurses at United Hospital. Bridget Nelson (kneeling), Kathy Bloom, Lori Morris, Ashley Greengard, Julie Schommer, Amy Hauenstein

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All Allina nurses are united in their support for fellow nurses at Regina Medical Center and want them to get a fair contract. Hastings nurses are first-rate and they deserve a contract that respects their experience and ensures patient safety and the continuity of care. Allina nurses from Buffalo and Thief River Falls joined nurses from United and RMC in an informational picket in St Paul.
… Read more about: Video: Allina Nurses Picket United for a Hastings Contract  »

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Nurses from Rice Memorial Hospital in Willmar, Minnesota, showed up in full force with their families to report to the City Council the community needs first-rate nurses and first-rate patient care.

Carolyn Jorgenson, RN, MNA Board member told council members who are the trustees for the hospital that the facility’s management team has set a poor tone with nurses.  She told a sea of MNA red in the audience that the employer has delivered an underlying message of disrespect for the value of nursing for the community.

Here are excerpts of the comments offered by Jorgenson at last night’s City Council meeting:

“I absolutely LOVE and live nursing. 
… Read more about: Willmar Nurses Go to City Hall  »

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MNA-with-Sen.-BakkNurses Day on the Hill 2014

Nurses had a great and productive day on March 11 visiting the Capitol and their respective representatives and senators.  Hundreds of nurses came out to educate lawmakers and without a specific bill to push in this short session, representatives and senators were happy just to have an education where they could learn about healthcare policy and the practice of nursing.  Nurses brought many issues to lawmakers’ attention for the first time, which they said they appreciated.  See below.

Health Care Professionals and Monitoring

There are now two bills moving through the Minnesota legislature.  SF 1890 passed out of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee last week and is now headed for a committee hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee next Tuesday at noon. 
… Read more about: MNA Legislative Update, March 14, 2014  »

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Bemidji-soupBemidji nurses served up chicken soup Sun., Mar. 9 in front of the town’s iconic Paul Bunyan statue to highlight the dangers of a sick policy imposed by Sanford Bemidji Hospital management.

Nurses face discipline if they use more than three sick days in a row or 40 hours of sick time within a year.  The “sick in” helped warn  community members that the attendance policy could force nurses to be compromised when giving care.  If nurses must work while sick, it could impact recovery if one is hospitalized.

The nurses served chicken noodle soup to all nurses and residents who come by. 
… Read more about: Bemidji Nurses Say Sanford Sick Policy is a Bad Remedy  »

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The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services passed SF 1890 Wednesday afternoon, which would give the Board of Nursing (BoN) more information about health care professionals who are eligible for the Health Professionals Service Program (HPSP) for treatment.

MNA testified and sent a letter to committee members about the bill and concerns with three elements of the bill.  Specifically, the bill still contains measures that could result in a chilling effect on those who self-report to HPSP.

Senators Tony Lourey, John Marty, and Chris Eaton agreed that addiction is a disease, and nurses shouldn’t be disciplined for voluntarily seeking treatment. 
… Read more about: Senate HHS Committee Considers Board of Nursing/HPSP legislation  »

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Linda-Hamilton_1MNA President Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN joined health experts on Monday to highlight the impact of low-wage work on community health.  The press conference also included Commissioner of Health Dr. Edward Ehlinger, Representative Tina Liebling and ISAIAH President Rev. Paul Slack and called for a wider discussion around ending poverty wages in Minnesota.

Although wages and health are rarely talked about together, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) drew the links. MDH released a report on Monday providing research to back up the claim that increases in income are associated with positive health outcomes.

The report  states that people with higher income are more likely to live longer and healthier lives than those with lower income levels, and recommends policies aimed at increasing income for groups with the lowest income.
… Read more about: Wages are a Health Issue  »

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P1030876Budget Surplus

Today’s economic forecast showed the state has a budget surplus of $1.23 billion, due to better-than-projected revenue collections and lower spending. This news is a welcome change from past years of structural deficits, budget gimmicks and program cuts. This shows that Minnesota is on strong economic footing and the budget reforms made last session worked. Because the budget has been improving, the state has already paid off the entire “school shift” ($2.8 billion borrowed from public schools to shrink the 2011 budget deficit) so the $1.23 billion surplus is not obligated to be spent on any specific program.
… Read more about: MNA Legislative Update, February 28, 2014  »

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According to the summary of a report by the Center on Women and Public Policy and the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota says that “at the current rate, the pay gap in Minnesota will not be closed until 2060.”  That’s right.  Men will still make more than women for the same job and the same work 140 years after Womens Suffrage, almost 90 years after a human landed on the moon, and about the same time Hailey’s Comet returns in its next 76-year-orbit.

As women succeed, the state succeeds.   How to accomplish that is spurred by the Womens Security Act-a legislative package of 17 ideas that are being championed by Rep.
… Read more about: Poverty has a Woman's Face  »

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Megan 2“I’d go back tomorrow,” states MNA member Megan Cassidy if she were asked to return to typhoon-ravaged Roxas City, Philippines.  And she’d be warmly welcomed by residents as well as the Registered Nurse Relief Network (RNRN) operation continuing to provide health services nearly three months after the area was decimated.

“The people we served are so appreciative that we keep coming,” said Cassidy who is back at her job as a pediatric nurse at Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis after volunteering in the Philippines from Jan. 15 – 27.  “But at the end of the day, it was my privilege to be there,” she added. 
… Read more about: RNs Still Make A Difference in Philippines  »

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Caucus-inviteAn Invitation from MNA President Linda Hamilton

2014 is an  important election year for nurses and the communities we care for and live in. The entire Minnesota House of Representatives is up for re-election, as well as the Governor, U.S. Senator Franken, all eight members of Congress and countless local races.

These elected officials make decisions about nursing and health care that affect our profession, our patients and our families. We must speak up for nursing values of caring, compassion and community. If we don’t advocate for our patients and our profession, no one will.

Start out by attending your party’s Caucus Night, Feb.
… Read more about: Nurse Power at Caucus Night Feb. 4  »