Women and Infants nurses respond to hospital saying staff concerns are ‘factually inaccurate’
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — The union representing frontline nurses at Women and Infants Hospital released a response to statements from the hospital that care concerns put forth by staff are “factually inaccurate.”
SEIU 1199NE released statements from several union members after the hospital said that labor and delivery nurses are not being asked to take on emergency department duties, which includes caring for men and children, but are instead being asked to “float” to the emergency unit to care for women and infants there.
“Management is saying publicly our concerns for these changes are ‘factually incorrect,'” Registered Nurse Robyn Hamaker said. “Not only does this contradict the information shared with frontline staff related to the new demands on them from hospital management, it also seems to ignore the advertising campaign Women and Infants has been running for months. Instead of distributing such conflicting information, the hospital needs to focus on helping staff feel more comfortable with the changes.”
A spokesperson for Women and Infants said there is no plan to change care in the following statement:
Labor and delivery nurses at Women and Infants Hospital are not being asked to take on full emergency department (ED) nursing responsibilities, and they are not being asked to care for men and children. They are being asked to float to the ED to take care of the types of patients they normally care for on their unit. Any nurses floating to the ED have the appropriate orientation/training for the patients they will care for.
Union members held an informational picket on May 14 to call on the hospital to provide more training and staffing if a change to care is to take place, and to also include staff in discussions on changing care.
A statement put out by SEIU 1199NE reads:
It is shocking to hear Women and Infants undermine and ignore the real-world experience of frontline staff who are calling for better staffing, training, and support. This is yet another reason why healthcare workers need to organize themselves in unions to ensure they have a voice on behalf of themselves and their patients.
