Potential MN Nurses Strike?

HM2VikingRN, RN · Jun 28, 2010

1. All workers should have REAL DB pensions. As I have written elsewhere the DB pensions are a money saver for workers and employers.

2. Management has a choice. Negotiate in good faith. I think MNA has been attempting to do that. Where has management been?

3. Safe staffing language is a long term goal that benefits the safety of all patients. (Herring has numerous links posted over many posts about the importance of staffing language.)

littleneoRN · Jun 29, 2010

Kitty, did you work the one day strike in MN?

kitty29 · Jul 1, 2010

Kitty, did you work the one day strike in MN?

Yes in the NICU...someone had to care for those babys...but the money got me there. Honestly I'd do it again but can not due to family visiting.

Someone mentioned some events done by the striking nurses....I do know that several did hit their signs against the windows of the NICU in the night. That angered me --- come on it's a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit...and parents were there too. Not good. Like a temper tantrum or something...and I think Both Sides are having one...not just the Nurses.

I realize the Nurses are being put in a difficult position making a difficult choise. Yet in all due respect...I just do not agree with unions in this situation...not for Nurses...I just don't. There are loads of ways to look at this action that will support it or negate it.

I do wish the Nurses who feel they are doing what they must the very best as a professional. I hope wisdom triumphs here and soon!!!

Peace.

ConsultantNurse · Jul 1, 2010

Ironically what is the cause and effect here?

A spokes person " a fellow nurse " had issues and apparently paid the time,

and faced her punishment--truly is there some significance here; do you truly

believe Alliance hired this person to invoke scandal? Surely they did not...

On the other hand you have nurses concerned about staffing; they feel 5 to 1

is too high; have any of you involved looked in non union states where staffing

truly is "tight" and where professional nurses somehow manage to document,

utilize their critical thinking and do their job.

I am a Consultant and or an Executive nurse and presume I fall into the bad

category but I work exempt generally and that means if I put 90 hours in or

10 I get paid the same amount. I am paid to think critically and pull together

"more for many" and there should not be a RN present who does not remember

courses specifically teaching you how to prioritize...

I've followed this story wondering who is truly in charge. You have unionized

RN's who suddenly attempt to take on management knowledge but do they

truly know the costs or the results of research? If anyone has read of the

general behavior of many RN's where staffing is 4 to 1 there are stories of

"just hanging out" not doing much of anything...Furthermore shift to shift report

allows for any nursing staff to know who is "going bad" the need for medication

changes and change of condition. It is very disturbing to have worked where

unions are the exception and in states where they do not exist and see real

nurses doing real work; using their skills which include critical thinking to do their

work. They complain about staffing when it gets closer in acute to 10 to 1 not

4 to 1. I am truly disgusted to think there is an economy out there where many

are without work and here you have 14 hospitals who attempt to follow the tenets

of their contract, and yet are not met at all.

Surely any nurse who walks in to work is not a strikebreaker but a professional.

If one life is lost due to turmoil or an agency nurse having to figure out where the

IV tubing is, how to reach physicians, the list goes on the "union nurses" are the

responsible party. They are the ones licensed to perform professional nursing

duties, their union buddies are there to rig the contract and have NO legal

responsibility for these patients.

Further for the hospitals to cut back on admittances is bad marketing overall,

and many of these union workers may lose time and duty even. When the

hospitals prepare for a strike they must lessen the load and hire agency nurses

from states where RN's are disgusted to see fellow nurses do this to patients because

it is NOT the way our profession is run.

It does not bother me whatsoever that a spokes person had a history; it does

show immaturity that these striking nurses are grasping at straws and then even

think to run back in on duty the day after their first strike expecting their positions

or census to support their wage.

Strike when a RN is a very serious position. I do believe the staffing ratios are quite

fair and perhaps they need to organize more "critical thinking classes" for these nurses

have forgotten how to prioritize care and handle emergent conditions; 4 to 1 is

a piece of cake we all know this sigh....

I've just re-read some of the posts and must AGREE heartily with the RN's who know the value of LIFE and the union RN's have forgotten; not just the NICU baby but any patient in need of acute care services has a right to good nursing care and it does not matter if you suddenly wish you made more money you are operational based on a UNION thought process and not your license or your nursing board standards. How sad to read some of the strikers are making noise, hiding equipment that is necessary for life and death I just did a "contract" in a state where nurses were HASTENING hospice clients to death; the God complex does NOT exist for RN's and yet it does here for who would call a professional covering their patients a SCAB I'd call them an angel of mercy, not to mention covering your liability as a RN union or not.

I'd suggest strongly that RN's read their legality clearly for it is to their nursing professional practice first and being in a union is secondary. How very sad and I applaud all nurses going in to serve under this crisis as well as the hospital for paying them excellent wages, housing and PROTECTION from strikers. One would not think you'd need protection but I'd caution any RN who publically behaves unethically that can bite you real quick on television and otherwise....

ConsultantNurse · Jul 1, 2010

Further THOUGHTS...

I am concerned overall with the element of "trust" as it applices to unionized "nurses" for it

begins to become a NEW BREED in our times of unemployment, fragmentation and increased

responsibility. After all within RN is several calibers and if you are 2 year or even a diploma

nurse must attain your BS or BSN; my BS is even higher science load to be considered a

professional.

Over the past few years HIGHER responsibility has occurred with legality for delegation of

tasks; some companies allow certain supervisied nursing actions to be done by lower level

staff--again we have further confusion in health care.

LTC (long term care) is where ACUTE care is going and it is forecast in the next 10 years at

best you will have operating centers and ICU "1" day centers and LTC will house 99% of what

was acute care clients; I work all ends of the spectrum and have opened MANY sub acutes, and

we are not talking LTAC we are talking about hospitals where private insurance is paying LOS

and it is NOT actively doing so now; no matter what utilization review tactics are used the days

of acute care hospitals is going fast.

Therefore, armed with knowledge that many upper executives have I have worked with

countless CEO's coming out of ACUTE to LTC knowing virtually nothing the regulatory issues

are highly complex in LTC and with emphasis rendering acute care you are seeing changes

SILENT to most in the business but money is behind them and again INSURANCE is paying

virtually 100% on LOS and for certain types for example post op with therapy and rehab 100%

paid for 3 to 8 weeks not 2 to 5 days people!!

Where do you think "union" will get you RN's with the future of healthcare going in this

direction where? You have nurses out there telling you 8 to 1 is the norm and 4 to 1 a luxury.

We as a profession (RN's) are showing what we can do and staffing is a general issue it is not

specific for we have COUNTLESS TECHNOLOGY and ways of thinking processes out to make

it work. I am sorry to say you cannot "bi00tch" about that one tough patient and yawn saying

"well I did not have time to chart..."

In the real world of healthcare we are moving fast. Those who cannot keep up fall down and

lose the pace; those who are not prepared for the new vision are going to lose out. When you have

less staff you improvise; I have been known to float CNA's from unit to unit depending on priority

need; schedule showers and baths for one CNA or assist to feed spreading the peanutbutter thin

but getting the taste and not losing balance.

We cannot as a PROFESSION make demands that do NOT meet the creativity we are known for.

For years now physicians became so specialized that they "forgot" how to treat the entire body.

I have 4 specialities and am proud to call myself a generalist and getting back to physicians

remember the "old doc who would make hosue calls..."

He could deliver a baby, wrap a broken foot, talk you down on the death of that loved one,

monitor your "ticker" after that last heart attack, he somehow remembered the body is a sum

of the WHOLE not of parts. Nursing has taken the load off of speciality medicine and in the acute

arena we can work harder, faster, and more efficiently as a TEAM and we must do so. No one

gets away with "staffing" and corporate will never buy it down just won't happen. Further the

excuse that you do this all for your patients is a LIE and we know this. A RN by practice and

nature has NO BUSINESS walking off the job without notice or a body in his or her place it is

unethical, immoral, and in many cases illegal. It offends if not breaks our nurse practice acts.

I am reading on this one day strike there was "undue noise, drinking and partying" my God who

or what profession does this? If you are looking to get the wrong view in the public eye keep it

up, not to mention those people who are putting off serious surgery (elective or not), time off from

work for medical reasons (in this economy we all know you cannot replace it), and then the lives

if only for a day or a week suffered INTOLERABLE pain due to this RN strike.

I can see the wheels turning in so many brains right now thinking "well it's not our fault it's a

union hospital and I had no choice" well you do have a choice people you do! if 84% of you

voted to strike then 16% did not. It was not an overwhelming or unresounding vote and further

who in the ranks wants the legal liability if a person dies, is injured, if an agency nurse crossing

strike lines is hurt, "lied to about where equipment is," and all of this out of what needs who

said and who can PROVE IT for your STAFFING issue is just weak, it's old, and with the staffing

ya'll have it's a cakewalk even for an older arthritic back injured RN because 4 to 1 is just

fantastic for most...

I am replying to my own post because you must think professionally not from emotion, personal

gain, greed, or device. You aer working and many in our profession are not OR are taking posiions

that COMPROMISE their own professional well being. I can't do that but some will try it just

because....

I'd advise all of you to start thinking about education, re-education, team building, sharing, and

even specializing tasks with CNA's to pick up specific tasks to deaden the load on the unit. Do not

"solo" yourself out that is so "old school" and doesn't fit in today's fast paced professional world of

nursing. Yes you should be able to float to other units, you should be able to pick up and assess

situations upon arrival; you should be ready, able, fine tuned and a professional RN working in a

huge community of like professionals throughout the world..

But, we are a PROFESSION we are ethical, caring, and critical thinking; we are a team of team building

healthcare experts and generalists who can, will, and MUST face today's chaos with peace, calm, and

ability. When you negate the profession, forget what we stand for, and then take 50% of your mind set and

turn it over to UNION something falls apart; I do not deny the need for UNION in America my first x husband

was in Teamsters (trucking) for many years, however, we answer to life and death as our daily diet. Those

hearts, hands, eyes, and minds in frail compromised bodies are entrusted to our care--we know even one wrong

move can end it and the TRUST in us as professionals WILL CEASE IF this strike posing does not stop.

I personally (one of my staff asked) would work the strike if asked to do so. Indeed I would. Just as the nurse

spoke of the NIC's and tears came to my eyes for I "felt" her emotional struggle and her shame over fellow

nurses denying these compromised babes and their families respect and love, making noise and causing fear,

and all for what...Yes the worst of it is when you witness that you have to think "do RN's really care about human

life, are they low class, what if this were their baby oh God?" Kitty you suffered working that day more then the

strikers will know, but there are many of us like you around this country who are willing if asked to fill in for how

ever long it takes to see this through. I have staff who have asked for leave of absence if the need comes up, and

I have to smile and say "we will see..."

What I'd like to end with to these UNION nurses in Minnesota is "you are not UNION you are RN's first..." May

God as our Creator and mentor of all we do remind you of this gift you are a RN and are needed in your capacity

to work with patients in need of your professional skills If that sinks in and HITS HOME then I know you will

understand what is going on...Perhaps a few months down the line if this strike does not occur and sadly I know it

will and everyone will be shocked and sickened as to what really happens when strikes take hold take some time

and visit another state, arrange to do some pro bono shifts in a compact staff is so licensed or get permission to walk

a shift with a DON or supervisor or Consultant like me and "see what it is really like..." Discuss your frustrations and

shock but until you get this EDUCATION where you live, where you work, and where you count as a RN it won't count

and you will not commit to doing what a good RN does; his or her duty 100% of the time...

I wish the best for all FIRST THE CLIENTS, secondly my own fellow professionals and clearly for mankind;

the healthcare business is changing fast and if you cannot RUN the pace drop off the course--change direction,

get out of acute care for soon it won't exist as you know it, change your role or speciality, move to a new location

BUT don't render the role of RN as useless, selfish, arrogant, pretentious or otherwise in the public eye. You are

making above average wages for sure, benefits, Magnet facilities, and those staffing ratios are super you must

think then you are special or what??? Do the research you will see and for shame if anyone loses a life for it won't

be on the UNION it will be on each of ya'll!!

PEACE OUT

Man In Black · Jul 2, 2010

(I am not an MNA nurse but I fully support their efforts at achieving safer staffing.) IMO no member of the bargaining unit has the least desire for any patient to come to harm and that is the driving force behind this dispute. It isn't to give nursig sit around time nor to be excessively staff rich but to assure that trained proficient staff are available when the proverbial manure hits the fan. An 8:1 ratio does not seem safe on an intuitive level for this very reason. It is not just about numbers of nurses to staff it is also to assure that there are adequate brains available to form the group mind needed to handle difficult situations.

I may not completely agree with the 4:1 ratio for all units but this is an area where it pays to have a reserve of expertise to handle the inevitable problems that arise during any tour. In my 20 plus years of MH experience it is always short staffing that leads to disasters. Cutting corners are what gets work units in trouble. Accepting 8:1 as the norm is unsafe. We should b raising the bar not lowering it.....(Add in reduced fatigue and decreased burnout it is very clear to me that we strengthen health care using with improved staffing ratios.)

Union workers are exercising their first Amendment rights of association to jointly communicate their concerns about their organizations. As professionals we can communicate our concerns about our practice through our organizations. This is hardly inconsistent with the Nurse Practice Act and to allege otherwise is less than accurate. (My reading of our nurse practice act requires us as professionals to identify unsafe working conditions to management.)

For all the talk about patient abandonment It is very clear to me that the replacements are really only interested in crossing the picket lines for the premium pay. It takes real courage to tell your boss that they are wrong and this is why.

Being creative with staffing is commendable but not if it endangers patients by putting staff in positions for which they are not qualified to practice either d/t lack of orientation or current proficiency in a work area. CNA's cannot be used to replace nursing judgement or expertise. (After all patients are older/sicker when they come to the hospital now...)

Technology is an aid not a replacement for the human. No machine can ever replace human expertise/assessment.

I personally don't oppose increased professional flexibility and versatility but this must be embedded within a training system to develop the skills needed to achieve those goals. If this is important to management and leadership than they need to put the money where their mouth is saying the priorities are to be placed. Value placed on training equates to quality care.

In my organization management calls our union "partners" and asks us to work with them to solve organizational problems and system redesign.

littleneoRN · Jul 2, 2010

ConsultantNurse,

One thing seems apparent in your words. That is that you are not a direct-care bedside staff nurse. I don't know who you are or where all your rhetoric comes from, but I do know this. I am a professional nurse, and part of being a professional is advocating for the patients and the profession that cares for them. In my previous jobs (non-nursing), which were less than professional, we made do, got our paychecks, and went home unconcerned with the outcomes. As professionals, however, we are obligated to speak up if we are not given the human and material resources to provide quality care. To be professional is not to go to work accepting the status quo and the resultant lapses in safe, effective care. We can disagree about how this advocacy should play out. But, I refuse to let my "creativity" take the place of the second nurse who should be helping me with a sterile dressing change. Creativity does not draw up code meds when there aren't enough nurses at a code. Creativity does not pass my meds for me while I'm doing a septic workup on one of my patients. Creativity is for the unexpected times when you find yourself short--a coworker falls ill midshift or you get several surprise admissions. Creativity finds it's expression in many ways in our work. But creativity can not constitute the the status quo staffing plan.

And...before we consider compromising the quality of care to make healthcare affordable, let's consider cutting back on the fancy lobbies, waterfalls, fountains, and other niceties that have become the new must-haves in hospitals. When we stopping paying to build, heat, air-condition, clean, power, and maintain the many luxuries we now know as commonplace, I will start to believe that perhaps my hospital's budget is tight. Right now the cranes and design teams in suits speak louder than the cries of money woes.

HM2VikingRN, RN · Jul 2, 2010

I can also think of several near misses and bad outcomes that resulted from an over reliance on technology.

(FTM I can think of fatal airline crashes caused by over-reliance on technology that subtracted human judgement. I also remember 2 professional airline pilots who saved hundreds of lives through their skills. (One landed a jet in an IOWA corn field after the rudder failed, the other landed in the Hudson river just last year.)

HM2VikingRN, RN · Jul 2, 2010

Tentative settlement

CNL2B · Jul 2, 2010

On the other hand you have nurses concerned about staffing; they feel 5 to 1
is too high; have any of you involved looked in non union states where staffing
truly is "tight" and where professional nurses somehow manage to document,
utilize their critical thinking and do their job.
It is very disturbing to have worked where
unions are the exception and in states where they do not exist and see real
nurses doing real work; using their skills which include critical thinking to do their
work. They complain about staffing when it gets closer in acute to 10 to 1 not
4 to 1. I am truly disgusted to think there is an economy out there where many
are without work and here you have 14 hospitals who attempt to follow the tenets
of their contract, and yet are not met at all.
Strike when a RN is a very serious position. I do believe the staffing ratios are quite
fair and perhaps they need to organize more "critical thinking classes" for these nurses
have forgotten how to prioritize care and handle emergent conditions; 4 to 1 is
a piece of cake we all know this sigh....

This rant is ridiculous. Exactly how many years has it been since you worked at the bedside? Since when is a 4:1 acute care ratio a cakewalk? I have to say NO, we don't all know this -- similar ratios are now legally mandated in CA -- so the entire state doesn't agree with you, and this is coming soon to a hospital near you via the NNU, whether you agree with it or not. I am seeing this as a HUGE national push that nearly all bedside nurses agree with. Regardless of whether or not a bedside nurse wants to buy into a union or agree with it's governance, the profession as a whole is dedicated to providing excellent care, and we are no longer able to do that without mandated patient ratios because of people like YOU. Acute care hospital patients are now the sickest of the sick. Floor patients are now the ICU patients of 30 years ago. Unfortunately, management strategies haven't changed to reflect this reality --- hence the union involvement.

I also really resent your statements about "real" nurses being able to handle a 10:1 ratio, and the partying/drinking on the picket lines. Excuse me? Do you have some sort of documentation to back that up? I'm sure if nurses were drinking on the picket lines it would have been all over the news -- I live in Minnesota, and would have gotten the local scoop either via the newspaper or the TV news. And yeah, sure, real nurses can take 10 patients -- but they can't provide even adequate care to 10 acute care patients. Get real. Get your butt out of the boardroom and follow a "real" nurse for a shift and find out what she/he really does these days.

Joint commission has data out there (I believe it was previously posted in this thread, so I'm not going to link it) that states that nearly 25% of reported serious errors were related to nurse staffing issues. How does that play into your ideology? Don't you, as an exec, participate in the survey process and report to them? If you think your 10:1 RNs can get all their required joint commission charting done on 10 patients so you can CYA and maintain your accreditation without missing/falsifying information AND actually take care of the patients, you are sorely mistaken.

HM2VikingRN, RN · Jul 2, 2010

We have to get staffing issues right. We have 47 million new patients entering the health care system via HCR. We are going to need more nurses with the expertise to handle the health challenges that these sicker patients are bringing with them.

Chico David, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2010

We have to get staffing issues right. We have 47 million new patients entering the health care system via HCR. We are going to need more nurses with the expertise to handle the health challenges that these sicker patients are bringing with them.

We surely do need to get staffing right, but the 47 million part is not quite correct. It would be true if we had really done health reform right, like most of the rest of the world does it. New laws will provide and/or require coverage for some substantial portion of the 47 million that were uninsured, but quite a few - perhaps 20 million, depending on whose figures you like - will still remain uncovered for various reasons. And the uninsured are a diverse mix - many of them folks who had pre-existing conditions and weren't able to get coverage at any price, but some of them were the young and healthy who have jobs that don't provide insurance and either felt they could not afford insurance or who simply opted to gamble and not buy it. So some will still be left out and many of those coming into the system are healthy enough not to hit the care system particularly hard.