Protect and recognize essential workers and the work they are doing.
Taking full page ads out in newspapers wishing a happy nurses week is an empty gesture if you lie about inventory and ration it, if you cut shifts and lay off healthcare workers, if you contest workers compensation claims when they become ill with Covid, when you violate CBAs and impose unilateral changes, when you refuse to pay HCWs when they must quarantine and when you otherwise disrespect them.
Our petition to Nuvance is in collaboration with our sisters and brothers of CHCA, Connecticut Healthcare Associates Union and our petition on presumption for WC is in collaboration with the CT AFL-CIO.
A petition will be out soon asking Prospect Healthcare to do the right thing. (Now available below)
In addition, we have AFT nation-wide petitions asking OSHA to do the right thing and calling for PPE and one from the CT AFL-CIO for the Governor to act on presumptive Workers’ Compensation.
HOPE Unions-Backus/Windham/Natchaug (Hartford Healthcare Organization of Professional Employees)
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/ppe-and-hazard-pay-for-hartford-healthcare-employees
L&M Locals’ petition (Yale)
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/lm-employees-and-new-london-area-residents-demand-to-yale-new-haven-health?source=facebook&&fbclid=IwAR1hOxLENTvin0iG4ZDjE-_7hZfmrYlVh7M7Cvuh-b12Pd6g3HfoB9HPlKI
Danbury/ New Milford portion (Nuvance)
https://www.change.org/p/danbury-hospital-and-new-milford-hospital-a-part-of-nuvance-health-front-line-workers-deserve-hazard-pay-from-danbury-and-new-milford-hospital
Prospect (Manchester/Rockville)
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/echn_prospect_cov19_petition?source=facebook&
Workers compensation petition CT AFL-CIO
https://actionnetwork.org/letters/workers-comp-presumption/
OSHA do your job (Emergency Standard to protect Healthcare Workers)
https://actionnetwork.org/letters/make-osha-protect-frontline-workers
Get us PPE
https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/healthcare-workers-need-protective-equipment-now
We are 59 days since our first confirmed case of Covid-19 in Connecticut.
After 12 consecutive days of decreased hospitalizations, we had a slight increase of 36 hospitalizations, now currently at 1500.
77 more have died for a total of 2633.
Staffing and it’s effect on Covid-19 outcomes
“In the nursing homes hit hard by COVID-19, 22% had below average staffing capacity, compared to 7% in the nursing homes without the disease. Nationwide, an analysis done by Kaiser Health News found that better-staffed nursing homes had fewer infection-control problems.”
CT nursing homes cited for infection control violations and low staffing (which were found to generally go hand in hand) before the pandemic, have had more Covid deaths than higher rated nursing homes. Although this article does not cover hospitals, we can reasonably expect the same correlation.
Letter to the editor from Mary Consoli RN, retired (and very active) president of the Danbury nureses.
Letter for Opinion Page
RECOGNIZING NURSES DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC
As we celebrate National Nurses’ Week, what an appropriate time for me to say “thank you” to my nursing colleagues and the entire healthcare team working during this pandemic. I would be remiss not to thank all the healthcare workers who make up the team that cares for our grateful community. It is very important to have this effort recognized. The Board of Directors took out a full page ad in the News Times, recognizing the efforts of front line employees.
I spoke with nursing colleagues who were grateful to Mr. Leonard Blatvatnik and the Blatvanik Family Foundation for the million dollar gift to Nuvance Health to support our frontline workers. In an article published April 10, 2020 in the News Times, Chief Development Officer Grace Linhard quoted. “The threat of life is unfortunately both real and unprecedented, and philanthropy is playing a critical role in our efforts to protect the communities we serve. Our patients and their families are relying on us to provide urgently needed care; its’ also critically important that we do everything we can to protect our frontline staff who are going the extra mile to provide that care”.
The nurses have been adamant about having enough P.P.E. Without an OSHA standard it is up to them to protect themselves to properly care for patients. The nursing staff should be commended for answering the call of duty. As part of a plan to care for patients, Danbury Hospital stopped elective surgery and converted patient floors to Covid-19 floors for the influx of patients. Nurses overnight, with limited training, became ICU nurses caring for patients on ventilators and medical nurses caring for critically ill patients. Their efforts, and the efforts of all team members, were recognized by Andrea Wren, a spokeswoman for the seven – hospital network Nuvance Health. In an article, published in News Times on April 16, 2020 she stated, “We’re extremely proud and grateful for the willingness of our employees to be reassigned from areas that we weren’t using so that we can add new beds within the four walls or our hospitals”.
Safe patient care is the priority of the Danbury Nurses. In February 2020 negotiations between Unit #47 and Danbury Hospital began for a successor agreement. By the beginning of March negotiations could not take place with COVID-19 present. Unit #47 proposed a one year agreement extending current contract with a wage increase. Danbury Hospital and Unit #47 negotiating team agreed to this with a modest wage increase. This was ratified by the membership and nurses went back to saving patient lives.
I read with such disappointment an Opinion article published in the April 12, 2020 issue of the News Times written by Sharon Adams, president of Danbury and New Milford Hospitals. She highlighted all the deliberation and planning by Nuvance Health management in preparation for the COVID-19 pandemic. Not once in the entire article, did she mention nurses or other healthcare workers who are essential in executing these plans.
I am so proud to be associated with the Danbury Nurses’ Union. These are dedicated nurses who, despite caring for patients with a lethal diagnosis, report each day to help patients recover. In my thirty years of bedside nursing caring for patients with HIV, SARs, the Flu and others, I never had the fear of bringing home a deadly pathogen to my family.
Unit #47 submitted a petition to Danbury Hospital management asking for hazard pay, not only for its nurses but also for all healthcare workers involved in the care of COVID-19 patients. The Hospital has not responded.
I am reaching out to the community and asking you for help. Please, send an email to Sharon.Adams@nuvancehealth.org asking Danbury Hospital to give nurses and healthcare workers hazard pay during this healthcare crisis. Happy Nurses’ Week!
Thank you,
Mary Consoli, RN BSN
Former President Danbury Nurses’ Union Unit #47
AFT Local 5047, AFL-CIO
Link to many great healthcare resources
Be well,
John
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