MountainView Hospital RNs File To Join National Nurses Movement

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 17 Jun 2009 - 6:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

In a bid to improve RN-to-patient staffing ratios, win an equitable contract, and ensure the highest safety standards for all their patients, the registered nurses of MountainView Hospital in Las Vegas, owned by HCA, have filed a petition to join the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, the nation's pre-eminent professional association and union for RNs.

RNs filed for the election Friday after being rebuffed again in their attempt to meet with facility CEO Will Wagnon to discuss the systemic understaffing and patient care concerns at MountainView.

"RNs at MountainView want to join CNA/NNOC so that we can truly have a voice in patient care issues. Our patients at this facility deserve nothing less than to be cared for in the safest possible manner. We've seen CNA/NNOC help bring these advances to other facilities in Nevada and beyond, and now it's our time," said Orsburn Stone, an RN at the facility.

The nurses would be able to unite with thousands of other colleagues in the HCA (Hospital Corporation of America) system, as well as more than 1,700 Nevada colleagues, including those working at the St. Rose system in Las Vegas.

CNA/NNOC is known for its commitment to improving patient care and patient safety procedures, especially through advocacy for RN-to-patient ratios and an independent RN-elected professional practice committee. Its groundbreaking contracts which set out equitable on- call policies, eliminate mandatory overtime, as well as enable nurses to retire with dignity, have caught the attention of RNs in Nevada. "Nurses around the Las Vegas valley are excited about the MountainView RNs organizing," said Heather DeMaris, RN, who works in the critical care unit at St. Rose Dominican Hospital. "The only way for RNs to have a real voice in patient advocacy and the profession of nursing is to stand together."

Malinda Markowitz, RN, co-President of CNA/NNOC, commented that, "HCA is the largest hospital chain in American history and they have a well-established reputation for putting profits before patients. The HCA hospital I work at demonstrates that when nurses are unified, we can force the hospital to take patient needs into account."

The petition was filed on June 12, with the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency that oversees the running of union elections. The NLRB is expected to soon issue a date for the election.

Source
California Nurses Association