The weather is starting to get crisper, the aroma of pumpkin spice is beginning to permeate the air, and thousands of Washingtonians are flocking to Pierce County to Do the Puyallup. It can only mean one thing; the start of fall is here.

This year fall is extra special for the union nurses at St. Clare’s as we begin to really ramp up our efforts heading into negotiations this winter. The pre-negotiation survey is out, and while we have heard from many of you, we want to make sure that every nurse has had the opportunity to make their voices heard and let us know what your priorities are heading into negotiations. This is also your chance to indicate whether you would like to be considered to be a bargaining team member. Follow the link to fill out the survey if you haven’t yet and encourage your fellow nurses to do the same.

Coffee Time

We heard you loud and clear night shift and held our first night shift coffee time this month. Moving forward every 3rd month we will be hosting coffee time at the hospital for night shift on the second Thursday of the month. We will also continue with coffee time for day shift on the second Friday of the month except for night shift months. This is a great chance to come and meet your local unit officers and let us know how things are going on your unit.

Hospital Staffing Committee

The HSC met on 9/19 and addressed several ADOs and issues concerning staffing at the hospital. Your union representatives continue to work collaboratively with hospital management to work towards improving staffing at the hospital, developing the tools and resources required under the staffing law, and ensuring that the hospital is following the requirements of the new law. St. Clare’s HSC is the gold standard for HSCs in Washington, and we want you to be a part of it.

The staffing committee is open to all nurses to attend and let your voices be heard. If you have questions or concerns about staffing plans, please come to the meetings and participate. The committee meets on the 3rd Thursday of each month at 0915. Look for information to be posted on your unit soon with links to join.

ADOs

Part of the HSCs mandate is to address concerns that have been raised through ADOs. The HSC takes serious and thoughtful consideration of each ADO and works hard to fix issues that have been brought forward. This goes to show how powerful the ADOs are, and we encourage you to complete one anytime your unit is inappropriately staffed, you miss a meal or rest break, have equipment or safety concerns, or for any reason you feel needs to be brought forward. You can complete an ADO by going to WSNA.org/ADO.

As always, we are grateful for all the hard work you do as union nurses and we are proud to represent you.

In unity,
Clarissa Korrell, Co-Chair  
Devon Tallma, Co-Chair  
Jessica Cook, Secretary  
Nicole Sandell, Treasurer  
Chelsey Dewidar, Grievance Officer
Nikki Wright, Grievance Officer
Brandi Poggemann, Membership Officer  
Molly McKinney, Membership Officer

You can contact WSNA Nurse Representative Jared Richardson, BSN, RN, at jrichardson@wsna.org or WSNA Organizer Grace LaMonte at glamonte@wsna.org.