Patient Advocates Hold Press Conference Outside State House, then Deliver 200,000 Signatures in Support of Two Health Care Ballot Initiatives to the Secretary of State’s Office via Hospital Gurney
On Wednesday, Dec. 4, a delegation of MNA nurses and patient advocates from across the state held a press conference outside the Massachusetts State House and t…
Help Save Psychiatric Services at North Adams Regional Hospital
When: Tuesday, December 10 at 6 p.m.
Where: American Legion, 91 American Legion Drive, North Adams
Who: Advocates for health care services in N…
What travel nursing means to me
What travel nursing means to me …getting to make dreams come true for my family. Guest Article written by: Michelle Lane On September 20 I arrived in Anchorage, Alaska for my assignment in Seward. I accepted this assignment because my baby sister, who I had not seen since she was 4, lives in Alaska. (I finally found her 5 years ago online. Long story short – bitter divorce between her mother and my father.) Me being able to come here not only gave me the opportunity to see my sister again, but I was able to make 2 dreams come true for my father, who is almost 77! 1. See my sister again. 2. See Alaska, which is on his bucket list. I want to personally thank each of you that helped me make this happen by giving a determined CNA the time and advice that brought me to this day. All of my Gypsy family- Thank You! Thank you Holly Fenn of Fusion Med Staff – this contract is more than a job!!! I can never thank you enough for all that you did, and continue to do. Myself, my father and my sister are forever in your debt!! THIS is because of all of you! About the Author: Michelle is originally from Baltimore County, Maryland, a suburb area called Essex, where she lived until she was 15. Her family then transplanted to Norfolk, Virginia. Michelle is married to ‘my wonderful husband’ Jay, and they have 2 daughters; Krysta (almost 22), and Kaitlynn […]
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Change Ahead: Seminar Series for Developing Nurse Leaders
Addiction Medicine in Primary Care: Expert Practice Series Presentations
Ask a Travel Nurse: What experience is needed to start travel nursing?
Ask a Travel Nurse Question:
What experience is needed to start travel nursing?
Ask a Travel Nurse Answer:
While it used to be a year of experience in whichever specialty you wanted to travel, most companies now mandate at least two years of recent experience.
You will also be best served if that experience is hospital based (unless of course your specialty is something like home care).
You can possibly have two years in different specialties. For example, if you first started your practice working on a tele floor, and then moved into the ICU, you could take a travel assignment in ICU (but of course those with two years of strict ICU might be chosen first).
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Hastings Nurses Tell Allina: “Care for Our Community”
After another session in an eight-month long contract negotiation process ended without an agreement, nurses bargaining with the Allina system are calling for the health care corporation to put the community first. “We are deeply concerned that Allina wants to treat workers in Hastings differently than they do in other parts of the state, and that tactic will affect the care we are able to deliver to our neighbors and friends,” said MNA negotiator Jane Traynor, RN.
MNA nurses from all over the Allina corporate system arrived in Hastings early Tuesday morning to help their new colleagues deliver a message of solidarity on behalf of their patients to hospital administrators at Regina Medical Center. As yet another session began in contract negotiations, a sea of red turned out in support of the MNA bargaining team.
“It’s empowering,” said Traynor. “These have been difficult negotiations with Allina, and we appreciate the support from nurses who have come from other facilities, as well as the nurses who work here.”
Allina swept the once-independent 57-bed regional facility into the corporate fold in September. Even though Regina Medical Center is just 20 minutes away from other MNA-represented metro facilities (including Allina-owned units) that enjoy mature contracts and a pension, Allina administration is offering sub-standard contract terms to the nearly 100 Regina nurses.
Hospital negotiators walked into a room full of determined nurses who stood proudly behind the MNA negotiations teams and voiced their purpose for being there.
“Every patient deserves the same level of excellent health care,” said Mary Turner, RN, a member of MNA’s Board of Directors who works at North Memorial Hospital (a non-Allina facility) in the Twin Cities. “And every nurse in Minnesota deserves to be treated fairly,” she added.
MNA President, Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN who is a pediatric nurse at Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis, offered a global perspective. “Today, 20,000 nurses in Minnesota and 185,000 across the nation are standing up for what nurses need to care for their patients.”
In addition to Turner and Hamilton, nurses from River Falls Medical Center, Unity Hospital, United Hospital and Abbott Northwestern all turned out in support of their colleagues.
Traynor delivered a petition to Allina negotiators that was signed by three quarters of the MNA nurses in the bargaining unit at Regina Medical Center. The powerful, clear message was headlined “Because our patients deserve high quality care,” and issued this bottom line: “We, the undersigned will not accept a contract offer that makes a second-rate commitment to the nursing care our patients deserve. We demand the same commitment to nursing in Hastings that Allina has made with every other MNA contract in the metro area.”
Contract showing changes made to include benefit time
Download contract here: files/file/BWH MNA Agreement 2011-2013.pdf…
Need to Know: Safe Staffing
Nurses across the State have expressed concerns about unsafe staffing levels and overtime. PSNA currently has Safe Staffing legislation, HB 1631, to address the issues of staffing within individual organizations using nurse-led staffing committees. Learn more about Safe Staffing here or call us to discuss this legislation.