Striking Washington nurses: 'Treat us with respect'
BY JANICE LYNN
WASHINGTON--A sea of picket signs reading "RN's on Strike," filled the streets here outside the Washington Hospital Center September 20, as more than 1,200 nurses walked out. Some held handmade signs saying, "We have a life, no more mandatory overtime." A number of passing cars and trucks honked their horns in support.
"The issue is not money, but working conditions and quality of care for patients," explained Sharon Clark, who works in emergency surgery and has 23 years at the hospital. Clark is local president of the D.C. Nurses Association. "Our members can be told at the end of the shift, without prior notice, that they will have to stay another two to four hours. They don't care how that affects your family or that you need to be home for your kids after school," Clark said.
"They need to adjust the staffing," declared Greg Pelletier who works in the cardiovascular recovery room. "We're tired of working 12-hour shifts every day. And we want to be treated with some dignity and respect," he added. "There are times when you don't even get a lunch break." This was the first walkout since 1978 when nurses struck for 31 days for union recognition.
Kiveyette Nelson, 21, just started working at Washington Hospital's Intensive Care Unit in August after graduating from Delaware State University. "I came here in the midst of this, but I feel the nurse-patient ratio is very important for giving people safe care," Nelson said. "If you're overloaded, stress and burnout sets in." On the picket line, many young nurses said this was their first job and their first strike.
Jeanette Walker works in neonatal care, and has 28 years at the hospital. "Sometimes nurses have as many as eight patients to care for. This means you're making rounds from one patient to the next the entire shift, increasing the odds that something serious can happen to one of the patients while you're trying to complete the round," she said. Walker explained the turnover was very high because of the mandatory overtime and the lack of a decent benefits package, where not everyone has full medical coverage.
Linda Pope, a nurse at D.C. General Hospital, came to show her support for the strike at Washington Hospital. "This fight and the fight to keep D.C. General Hospital open is part of the same thing," she said. "If D.C. General closes, nurses here will face even more mandatory overtime and the quality of care will be badly affected." Iron workers, teachers, and others have joined the picket lines.
The hospital brought in replacements from an outfit called U.S. Nursing Corp., which specializes in strike-breaking. Along with the bosses they are trying to keep the hospital operating. "Patients beware, management giving care," is one of the chants on the picket line. The employers have embarked on a media campaign to try to portray the nurses as overpaid and insensitive to patients' needs. The nurses explain that they want a voice in setting hospital policies and that they are determined to hold out for their demands.
Sam Manuel, Socialist Workers candidate for D.C. Delegate to the House of Representatives, contributed to this article.
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