MNA Daily NewsScan, August 29, 2012: Employee safety concerns at MN Security Hospital; MN kids health coverage down (Page 99)

NOTES ON NURSING

More Injured Employees, Fewer Doctors at Minnesota Security Hospital    Employee injuries at the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter, state’s largest facility for the mentally ill and dangerous, increased sharply this year as the number of permanent psychiatrists dropped from six to one and security practices have put counselors into closer contact with patients.

HEALTH CARE

Minnesota Lagged Nation in Growth of Public Health Coverage for Kids   The growth of public health insurance coverage helped blunt the impact of the recession for many kids across the country, but a new study suggests the dynamic didn’t hold true in Minnesota.

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In: Healthcare, Labor Unions, Nurses, Organizing, Politics

NOTES ON NURSING

More Injured Employees, Fewer Doctors at Minnesota Security Hospital    Employee injuries at the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter, state’s largest facility for the mentally ill and dangerous, increased sharply this year as the number of permanent psychiatrists dropped from six to one and security practices have put counselors into closer contact with patients.

HEALTH CARE

Minnesota Lagged Nation in Growth of Public Health Coverage for Kids   The growth of public health insurance coverage helped blunt the impact of the recession for many kids across the country, but a new study suggests the dynamic didn’t hold true in Minnesota.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 29, 2012: Employee safety concerns at MN Security Hospital; MN kids health coverage down  »

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In: Activism, Bargaining, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Organizing, Politics

HEALTH CARE

National Nurses United’s RoseAnn DeMoro Named to Top 100 Most Influential Health Care List for 11th Straight Year   DeMoro, who is number 36 on the list of 100, is one of only eight people to be named to the list for each of the 11 years it has been compiled. She is also one of only two women to be named every year on a list that is dominated by figures in government and corporate healthcare institutions.

NOTES ON NURSING

Unsafe Nurse-to-Patient Staffing Ratios are a Key Cause of 98,000 Preventable Deaths Each Year    Registered nurses form the backbone of this system, providing triage and treatment. 
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 28, 2012: DeMoro tops; RN staffing & preventable deaths; Collectiving cargaining on MI ballot  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Labor Unions, Nurses

I just wanted to jot a note about my recent experience at the Minnesota State Fair to let members and staff hear of the experience.

The Minnesota State Fair is indeed the “Great Minnesota Get together.”  Fairgoers from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Colorado and even Louisiana stopped to visit with MNA Nurses, as they always do, and all communicated their thanks for what we do every day. They could not say enough about Nursing’s dedication to them and their families!

One mother wanted us to know it was the Nurses at Minneapolis Children’s Hospital who stood at her daughter’s bedside 24/7 when she received medical care for her Leukemia.
… Read more about: MNA at the Minnesota State Fair – Real Stories. Real Conversations. Real Impact.  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Politics

NOTES ON NURSING

Worth Watching: MNA RNs help recovering patient see his son’s West Coast wedding.

HEALTH CARE

Worth Reading: The Center For Public Integrity has a series out on how politicians are manipulating the facts about medicare during election season.

Moody’s Investors Service has declared that not-for-profit hospitals are financially stable for now, but the fiscal realities of the Affordable Care Act could darken that picture in the future.

LABOR

Right-to-work: “They want to run us to death.”
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 27, 2012 – MNA RNs Help Recovering Patient See Son’s West Coast Wedding  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Politics

HEALTH CARE

Fairview Health Services wants to spend $53 million to … wait for it … make capital improvements.

From The New York Times: A Night the ER Staff in Aurora, Colorado will never forget.

LABOR

Hundreds of nurses in the Boston area will vote next week whether or not to authorize a strike.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 24, 2012 – Fairview Wants to Spend $53m … on Buildings; Boston RNs Ponder Strike Vote; A Night ER Staff Will Never Forget  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Politics

HEALTH CARE

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Hospitals are blaming health care reform and the economy for cutting back on staffing levels.

Underscoring hospitals’ interest in employee health, 84 percent of medical facilities in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut that responded to a new survey offer workers a wellness program or activity.

Study: Middle Class Suffered “Worst Decade in Modern History” as wages stagnated, share of income fell.

LABOR

If you’re headed to the State Fair, make sure you stop by the MNA booth to say hello!
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 23, 2012 – State Fair Begins; Hospitals Sing Familiar Tune  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Politics

HEALTH CARE

Sad story gets more grief: Jennifer Gallagher, a nurse who cared for Aurora shooting victims at the University of Colorado Hospital last month, drowned on Aug. 6 while swimming in Iowa’s Lake Okoboji.

Montana’s hospitals generally provide a sizable amount of charity care and community benefits, but a study released by the state’s attorney general has questioned the values stated by some of the facilities, reported the Helena Independent Record.

What are the 10 health care jobs most impacted by the new Affordable Care Act? Find out!
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 22, 2012 – Tragic Story Gets Worse; Hospitals’ Charity Care in Question  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nurses Strike, Nursing

HEALTH CARE

Medical Errors Continue to Dog Health Care   A new Wolters Kluwer Health Survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers revealed that nearly one third of Americans (30 percent) have  experienced a medical mistake either firsthand or from a third-party. A majority (68 percent) believe that as  the  medical field continues to adopt new technologies, medical errors will decrease.

Time for Medicine to Take Its Own Pulse   The truth is that for a large part of medical practice, we don’t know what works. But we pay for it anyway. Our annual per capita health care expenditure is now more than $8,000.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 21, 2012: Med errors still high; Not enough profit, UnitedHealth turns back on 174,000 Wisconsonites  »

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In: Activism, Healthcare, Hospitals, Labor Unions, Nurses, Nursing, Politics

HEALTH CARE

A former Wells Fargo & Co. mortgage consultant has accused the San Francisco-based bank of firing him in order to avoid paying for his daughter’s cancer treatment.

LABOR

Members of the California Nurses Association urged state lawmakers to set a minimum level of charity care for all nonprofit hospitals in exchange for their lucrative, tax-exempt status. CNA released a study Wednesday concluding that beyond what they delivered in charity care, California’s nonprofit hospitals in 2010 received more than $1.8 billion in government subsidies and benefits from their tax exemption.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, August 20, 2012: Wells Fargo Behaving Badly?  »