Department of Health Hearing on Proposed 160 Bed Tower

Nearly 80 people attended the 3 ½ hour virtual hearing on Friday and the overwhelming majority were WSNA Good Sam nurses. Good Sam nurses were fearless and did not pull punches in the questions – they demanded accountability from MultiCare management as to how they planned on staffing a new tower with 160 additional beds when they were not staffing the current hospital safely. It was evident that MultiCare underestimated how angry nurses are about current inadequate staffing. We were clear that our East Pierce County community needs more hospital beds but those beds must be staffed safely for both staff and for patients. WSNA submitted a comprehensive statement to the DOH about our concerns. Also submitted were heartfelt written testimony written by the nurses. The DOH says a decision for the project is scheduled for June 26.

Here’s the link to the Tacoma News Tribune Article for those who subscribe:

ADOs – When to fill them out

WSNA created the ADO (Assignment Despite Objection Form) – also called Staffing Complaint form to give nurses a means to communicate staffing and safety concerns. In addition to inadequate staffing plans or inadequate shift adjustments, ADOs are also used to report and track missed meal and rest breaks; workplace violence; equipment/supply issues; and system failures such as computers being down or broken bar code scanners. All these factors contribute to safe and efficient working conditions. ADOs are appropriate when staff ratios are too high, including not enough support staff; when acuity/intensity is higher than projected; when assignments pose a threat to the health and safety of patients or staff; when charge nurse is unable to perform charge duties; inappropriate assignment for skill level and more.

Note: the ADO does not replace your need to write incident reports (HROs) when appropriate; nor does it replace your requirement to submit tickets for malfunctioning equipment. Please submit those necessary items, in addition to the ADO. Do not allow management to tell you that your ADO is not appropriate – they do not define how this form is used. If a nurse just submits an incident report, it is very possible that neither the nurse nor WSNA will receive a copy of the report.

ADOs are sent to WSNA leadership as well as to your manager. When staffing related, they are to be reviewed at the Nurse Staffing Committee meeting. When non-staffing related, they are reviewed at the Nurse Conference Committee (labor/management) meetings.

It IS appropriate for your manager to follow up with you about your ADO. It is NOT appropriate for them to retaliate against you for submitting it. See article 14.6 in the WSNA Contract:

Nurses will not be counseled, disciplined and/or discriminated against for appropriately raising patient-care issues including but not limited to questioning appropriateness of the assignment, filling out an ADO or participating in staffing committees.

We realize that your time is valuable. The ADO can be done fairly quickly using the online form. Remember to notify your charge nurse/supervisor as soon as you realize there is an issue or concern. Check as many boxes which are applicable. Use the narrative to help us understand what took place. If you state that harm took place, please describe what happened.

The ADO form was recently reformatted to a new system. Please share with us how this new form is working for you.

Upcoming Bargaining Sessions

Session #14 is Thursday May 4

Session #15 is Friday May 12

Our bargaining team will be working hard with the assistance of the federal mediator to try to reach a Tentative Agreement with management these next two sessions.

Upper level management is instructing managers to discipline nurses for wearing the WSNA T-Shirts. Management is violating federal labor law by doing this, and WSNA has filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board. In the meantime, if management asks you to remove your shirt and threatens you with discipline, comply and let Nurse Representative Janet Stewart (jstewart@wsna.org) know immediately!

Our spirit won’t be broken. Continue to show your union solidarity and support by wearing a plain blue shirt or scrubs, your WSNA buttons, stickers, badge buddies and badge reels.

We highly encourage you to join us in negotiations as an observer. Contact WSNA Organizer Grace LaMonte for more details: GLamonte@wsna.org.

Follow us on Social Media!

You can share our Facebook picket event at https://fb.me/e/3C6nlyrZ2.

Follow us on Instagram @GSHnurses, and on our Facebook page at Good Samaritan Nurses. To join the private Facebook group for RNs, ask your unit rep or a bargaining team member to add you.

In solidarity, your bargaining team:
Mindy Thornton, Jared Richardson, Aaron Bradley, Raeli Korzeniecki, Dawn Morrell, Anne Landen, Ashley Eubanks, Atalia Lapkin, Erin Butler, and Paul Grantham

If you’d like to observe bargaining; want to know how you can get more involved with your Union, contact Organizer Grace Lamonte GLamonte@wsna.org. Next bargaining date is May 4.

Questions/Issues, contact Janet Stewart, WSNA Nurse Representative jstewart@wsna.org.