[TrudyRN]

Originally Posted by kukukajoo

End of shift and abandonment don't fit in the same sentence. Also considering all the other walkouts, why were just the foreign nurses charged? Sounds like they are being targeted.

Maybe they were the only nurses working there. Or maybe they were they only ones who walked out.

Do you think those who did not walk out should be charged?

I agree that this end of shift walkout thing needs to be clarified.

[TrudyRN]

Originally Posted by Suesquatch

From the article:

"The indictment says the same day the 10 nurses resigned, two nurses from Split Rock Rehabilitation and Health Care Center in the Bronx and two nurses from Bayview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Island Park had also resigned; the day before, 10 nurses from Brookhaven Rehabilitation and Health Care Center in Far Rockaway had resigned. All are owned by Sentosa Care. Those nurses were not charged."

I guess resigning is different than walking out.

[Suesquatch]

Good research, Lizz!

I'm going to go with Suzanne on this one, and those who think Sentosa is looking for indentured servants. Of course people shouldn't sign lousy contracts but if you had the choice of staying in unstable, impoverished Manila or getting what looked to be a good oppotunity here you might sign, esp. if you didn't know that the facility was run by a bunch of lying thieves.

And I still say it's racist. A bunch of American nurses would never be charged in this way.

[TrudyRN]

Originally Posted by kukukajoo

It doesnt say really, but the case law they are referencing in the indictment sounds like someone walked off a job on that. But thiers says they finished shift, so would not be immediately liable. They are saying because of the mass walkoff it put all the pts at risk for care later as they did so knowing that quitting would make it impossible to get help.

Forgive me but I have little sympathy for the employer. A mass resignation would mean that Admin types might have to get off their tushies and "Go Bedside", yes. Or , Heaven FORBID, they might have to use Agency nurses!

Of course, they also have the option of making workloads bearable and safe, paying a decent wage, making sure nurses get their breaks and have supplies to work with, have a secretary, get respectful treatment from doctors, etc. Such procedures might encourage those nurses who walked out to walk back in.

[TrudyRN]

Originally Posted by Suesquatch

Good research, Lizz!

I'm going to go with Suzanne on this one, and those who think Sentosa is looking for indentured servants. Of course people shouldn't sign lousy contracts but if you had the choice of staying in unstable, impoverished Manila or getting what looked to be a good oppotunity here you might sign, esp. if you didn't know that the facility was run by a bunch of lying thieves.

And I still say it's racist. A bunch of American nurses would never be charged in this way.

You actually believe that American nurses would not be (or have not been) charged if they endangered patients?

[Suesquatch]

Originally Posted by TrudyRN

You actually believe that American nurses would not be (or have not been) charged if they endangered patients?

If they actually endangered patients, yes, they would have and should have been charged.

I think that this charge is bogus. They have other nurses albeit, as you just said, maybe not bedside. No one should be forced to work as a slave. Of course, I contribute every day by buying cheap Asian goods, but that's another thread.

A message is being sent to foreign nurses that if they accept a contract here they will be imprisoned if the employer abuses them and lies.

[Sheri257]

Originally Posted by chris_at_lucas_RN

I'm surprised to see so many posts in this thread that ignore the reality of the responsibility of our profession. We are not factory workers whose car parts can simply sit on the assembly line until management finds someone else to do the job. Our "car parts" are living beings.

Don't nurse practice acts dictate what we should do when...? No attorney, nor his advice, supercedes the law. I'm pretty sure I saw something about the authority of the nurse practice act when I took my boards.

The bottom line is always safety. These nurses put their patients in harm's way.

I agree. It seems like whenever nurses are charged with wrongdoing, many people side with them just because they are nurses.

Theses nurses pulled a stunt because they wanted to get out of a bad contract. Walking out on a Friday night was a cheap shot and I don't care what excuses they give, I seriously doubt any jury is going to sympathize with them, especially when they're abandoning disabled children.

People can argue over the technicalities but, it just looks really bad. The public expects nurses to behave more professionally than that and at least make an effort to provide continued care for their patients ... especially when there are sick children involved.

This also was phenomenally stupid because, no matter how bad their employer was, they ended up making themselves look like the bad guys. All they had to do was give reasonable notice so the employer could have a chance to replace them. If they had done that, they wouldn't have been charged with these crimes.

[Sheri257]

Originally Posted by TrudyRN

Forgive me but I have little sympathy for the employer. A mass resignation would mean that Admin types might have to get off their tushies and "Go Bedside", yes. Or , Heaven FORBID, they might have to use Agency nurses!

Of course, they also have the option of making workloads bearable and safe, paying a decent wage, making sure nurses get their breaks and have supplies to work with, have a secretary, get respectful treatment from doctors, etc. Such procedures might encourage those nurses who walked out to walk back in.

True. That's what nursing strikes are for ... to force better working conditions.

But the unions still give them notice so they have a chance to hire those agency nurses. They don't just walk out en masse with no notice, leaving the patients in the lurch with no nursing care.

[Sheri257]

Originally Posted by Suesquatch

A message is being sent to foreign nurses that if they accept a contract here they will be imprisoned if the employer abuses them and lies.

This is ridiculous. Again, read the indictment.

The primary dispute here was that these nurses had to pay $25,000 if they didn't fulfill their three year deal ... which they didn't want to pay. That's why they walked off the job.

"It was the conspiracy's objective to obtain for the Avalon Gardens' nurses alternative employment and a release from their three year commitment to Sentosa Care without incurring a financial penalty of $25,000."

I seriously doubt that anybody had a gun to their head forcing these nurses to sign these contracts. Suzanne warns foreign nurses not to sign these contracts all the time. These warnings are posted again, and again, in this forum.

So, if anybody is imprisoning foreign nurses ... it's foreign nurses themselves.

If you sign a bad contract ... it's ultimately your responsibility.

[Suesquatch]

We disagree, Lizz.

And I read the indictment. I do know how to read.