Wichita nurses announce plan to picket on May 1 for patient safety and safe staffing

Ascension nurses to protest hospital administration's refusal to address their concerns

Nurses at Ascension Via Christi St Francis and St Joseph in Wichita, Kan., gave notice to their employer on April 21 that they will hold an informational picket on May 1 to protest the administration's refusal to address RNs' deep concerns about patient care and safe staffing, announced National Nurses Organizing Committee//National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU).

Despite making historic gains in their first contract, nurses at Ascension continue to see unsafe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and preventable security lapses during an era of increasing risks for health care workers.

Ascension Via Christi St. Francis and St. Joseph nurses have been in negotiations since March for a new contract with little to no movement on key issues. The RNs urge management to invest in nursing staff and agree to a contract that provides:

• RN-to-patient staffing improvements
• Security infrastructure to protect patients and staff
• Nurse unity across Wichita

"Many of our units are understaffed most shifts," said Brooke Oberly, RN in the oncology unit at St Francis. "Ascension must do more to staff the hospital."

Who: Registered nurses at Ascension Via Christi St Francis and St Joseph
What: Informational picket for patient safety and a fair contract
When: Friday, May 1, 8 a.m.
Where: St. Francis Hospital, public sidewalk on Murdock and St. Francis streets

"The hospital must do more to protect patients and staff. Dangerous weapons find their way into the hospital all the time," said Carol Samsel, RN in the critical care unit at St. Joseph. "This month, a live grenade was found in a patient room. We need a weapons detection system now."

NNOC represents more than 1,200 nurses at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis and St. Joseph.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.