OCTOBER 2019
A NEWSLETTER FOR NYSNA RNs AT ERIE COUNTY MEDICAL CENTER
Safe Staffing: Battle and Progress on Many Fronts ECMC’s Safe Staffing Committee in Full Swing
Nurses Play Leading Role in DOH Safe Staffing Study
We won new, groundbreaking safe staffing language in our new contract, including a commitment of $4.5 million to begin hiring new nurses. We didn’t waste any time launching our Safe Staffing Committee and getting to work.
This summer, Kena testified in the first of the New York State Department of Health (DOH) hearings on enhancing safe nurse-to-patient ratios, emphasizing the statewide nature of the safe staffing crisis. NYSNA nurses were also there for the second public hearing in September, and Buffalo-area nurses travelled to New York City on October 22 to testify in the third hearing. We look forward to seeing the results of the study, which was mandated in the 2019-2020 New York State Budget and is a crucial step in making policy—and bringing safe staffing in New York State one step closer to reality.
“We are already working hard through the new staffing committee to hire two new nurses per unit, and identify the safe staffing needs on a unit-by-unit basis,” said Chiqkena “Kena” Collins, RN, NYSNA Western Regional Director of the Board and ECMC Delegate. “It’s really an exciting time at ECMC and I’m happy to see nurses continue the momentum we built during the contract campaign by wearing red on Wednesdays!” The new Safe Staffing Committee is comprised of an equal number of NYSNA RNs and Management. The structure of the committee ensures there is representation from all areas.The committee is now reviewing assignment sheets and float logs to get an idea of areas that are chronically short, so we can prioritize hiring more nurses in those areas. Rachel Larkin, RN, another member of the new Safe Staffing Committee, said: “This is new territory for us. With hard work and creative solutions, we will make it happen!”
NYSNA Board Focuses in on Safe Staffing At the union-wide level, the NYSNA Board of Directors recently launched a Safe Staffing Committee, chaired by our very own Kena Collins, RN! We believe creating a committee to focus in on winning safe staffing in every NYSNA facility in the state, as well as through state legislation, will bring us even closer to victory!
SAVE THE DATE! Holiday Party & Interregional Meeting December 4 Pearl Street Pub 5p-9p
WE ARE NURSES, WE ARE NYSNA!
Improving Safety in Med-Surg Making Change That incident prompted meetings and organizing to happen. The nurses in Med-Surg began documenting and reporting incidents—including five assaults over a single weekend. They brought that data and their concerns to their unit manager and to Senior Vice President of Nursing, Karen Ziemianski, RN, MS. Now frontline nurses, their unit manager and NYSNA staff are working together to create a safer work environment.
“It’s actually not OK to be verbally or physically assaulted by a patient,” explained Amanda Brooks, RN, in MedSurg. It’s incredible a nurse would have to assert this basic fact, but with the incidents of verbal and physical abuse against nurses and ancillary staff growing, nurses in Med-Surg felt they needed speak out and change the culture that accepts violence as just part of the job. Violence on the Rise This summer, nurses began noticing an increase in assaults. Amanda had been assaulted twice, and one of her colleagues is still recovering from an attack in July, when she sustained a concussion and other injuries. “I arrived on the floor the next day,” Amanda explained. “The patient was still on the floor without additional safety measures for the staff. The fact that nothing changed then—that’s when I realized there was a disconnect. ECMC was not adequately concerned that nurses could get hurt.”
The nurses created a Med-Surg safety committee to see changes through. Right now, they are working on a rapid response system, which utilizes an interdisciplinary team, including medical and psychiatric doctors, to respond to aggressive patient behavior. Building a Culture of Safety Behavioral Health launched a similar safety initiative nearly two years ago, meeting with management every two weeks, to improve safety on the unit. The effort has been very successful; nursing and physician staffing has improved, along with retention and morale. There’s a new system in the computer to document and alert nurses to patients with violent histories, and soon, behavioral health nurses will pilot a “critical incident stress management team” to quickly respond and take care of employees when they are hurt. “We talk about our patients being our passion, but our fellow nurses should also be our passion,” explained Jennifer Brinkworth, RN, from Behavioral Health. “We need to support one another. Major changes may take a while, but will be worth the effort.” “When I started researching the workplace violence issue, I realized that it’s not a single floor issue—it’s a worldwide issue—and violence against nurses is steadily increasing everywhere,” said Amanda. “We need to tackle this issue hospital wide, because everyone deserves to be safe at work.”
A Newsletter for NYSNA RNs at Erie County Medical Center
OCTOBER 2019
Victory in GI Lab
Nurses in the GI Unit have a heavy workload—they are expected to admit, discharge, do the sedation, perform the procedure, and turn over the room. Critical care experience is essential, and the GI team come mostly from the ICU, ER or OR.
This summer, ECMC’s GI Lab was in a state of flux. The unit had grown a lot in recent years, but with the main doctor hoping to retire, nurses in the lab were nervous about the future. Nurses were also feeling incredibly overworked. The hospital began adding doctors, GI fellows, and patients. With an assumption of a high level of patient no-shows, scheduling was overbooking appointments, and the Administration was understaffing nurses. “We were working non-stop, working late, missing our lunches and breaks,” explained Lynn Sorce, RN, the charge nurse in the GI Lab. “We were concerned about the level of patient care we could provide under these conditions. Inpatient procedures were being delayed, we couldn’t take the time we need with patients, and nurses were feeling incredibly stressed.”
The GI nurses began filling out Protests of Assignment (POAs), but management gave them pushback, saying that it was too difficult to determine understaffing in an outpatient unit. They asked for more nurses to be hired, but were told no. That’s when the GI nurses sought help from their NYSNA Rep to protect their patients and their licenses. “Management made me feel bad about reaching out to my NYSNA Reps, but as nurses, we have a job to do and we take pride in our work,” said Lynn. “Where the Administration may be looking at the number of jobs and money, they don’t see the patients and the bigger picture of what we go through.” Almost immediately, the GI nurses got results. ECMC committed to hire another full-time RN, as well as a certified medical office assistant to help with non-nursing functions. “I’m happy with where’s we’re at, and give all the credit to the nurses on the floor,” said Lynn. “If we see something that isn’t right, we can stand for what we believe in, because our union is the strongest it’s been.”
Know Your Contract: Assault Pay 11.08 Assault Pay
Our new contract changes and strengthens the definition of assault pay. If there is a violent incident at work, notify your NYSNA Representative and the NYSNA Health & Safety Representatives at healthandsafety@nysna.org.
In the event that an employee is necessarily absent from duty as a result of an assault, as defined below, upon his/ her person during the course and in the discharge of his/ her person during the course and in the discharge of his/her job responsibilities and duties for the Employer resulting in an injury for which the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board has allowed benefits as an occupational injury, such employee shall receive up to the first two (2) months of such absence with full pay and benefits, without use of any sick leave credits. Thereafter, he/she shall have all accrued sick leave benefits necessarily used during such absence restored upon his/her return to duty. For the purposes of this Article and Section, assault shall be defined as any incident involving forcible and unauthorized physical contact taken against an employee in the workplace.
UPCOMING EVENTS (For more information or to register, ask your NYSNA Rep)
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HOLIDAY PARTY & INTER-REGIONAL December 4
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SEMINAR AT SEA May 2020, Italy
Executive Committee Kevin Donovan, Vice Co-Chair, 7 Zone 4 Karen Green, Terrace View Vice Co-Chair, Supervisor Heather Scott, Secretary, Behavioral Health Clinics Cathy Bystrak, Grievance Chair, MLK & Cazenovia Lisa Nowak, Terrace View Grievance Chair, Canal Ray Rebmann, Membership Chair, 7 Zone 1 Rachel Larkin, Behavioral Health Specialty 1, 5 South Sarah Ott, Behavioral Health Specialty 2, 5 South Tamara Barr, Critical Care Specialty Rep , TICU Chiqkena “Kena” Collins, Critical Care Specialty Rep, MICU & Western NY Regional Director Loretta Palermo, Emergency Dept. Specialty, ED Dana Bellido-Clark, Med/Surg Specialty Shawntres Currin, Med/Surg Specialty, 7 Zone 2 Sherry Thomas, OR/Recovery Specialty, PACU Elizabeth McRae, TV Specialty 1, Naval Park Steve Bailey, Terrace View Specialty 2, Kensington Murnita Bennett, At-Large, Care Management
Floor Delegates
Interested in being a delegate and making sure your coworkers and issues are being represented? Contact Jennifer.Valentin@nysna.org or Michael.Graham@nysna.org
Stay connected: join our Facebook group! www.facebook.com/ groups/eriecountynysna/
Dana Brown, Anesthesiology Dionna Vasquez, Care Management Julie Roman, Health Information Management Deanna McCray, Outpatient Dialysis Shawn Mitchell, 5 North Alicia Geiss Shannon Mahar Matt Botticelli, 6 North Tara Hill, 9 Zone 3 Jennifer Greene, 9 Zone 4 Katrina Reynolds, 9 Zone 4 Cynthia Dwyer, 7 Zone 1 Mackenzie DeCarlo, CPEP Ykeeta Henderson, CPEP Amina Shaibi, CPEP Ben Stanford, Unit Manager Delegate Colleen Casali, ASU Valeta Dunn, 8 Zone 1 Alexandra Vasquez, 8 Zone 1 Christa Poteat, 8 Zone 2 Lee Barnett, OR Liam Morrissey, OR Jennifer Brinkworth, 4 Zone 4 Avneet Jacob, 12 Zone 2 Dylan Deabold, 12 Zone 2 Khadija Hatten, 12 Zone 3 If you’d like to join our leadership team, speak to a Delegate, or contact your Rep.
GET ANSWERS/STAY IN TOUCH Your NYSNA Representatives: Michael Graham michael.graham@nysna.org 716-467-0449 Jennifer Valentín-Polanco jennifer.valentin@nysna.org 716-445-6319 Dental benefit questions: www.Aetna.com, 877-238-6200 Prescription benefit questions: www.optumrx.com, 888-691-0130 For all other benefits: www.lmhf.net, 716-601-7980
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