Nurses demonstrate at Hahnemann, call for improved staffing levels

About 50 members of Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses & Allied Professionals gathered in front of Hahnemann University Hospital Friday for a demonstration to push for improved staffing levels at Philadelphia-area hospitals.

The nurses — some of whom wore buttons proclaiming "3:1," representing their desired patient-to-nurse ratio — unveiled a petition that has been signed by thousands of nurses at local medical centers demanding improved staffing.

PSNAP officials noted studies consistently show that appropriate nurse staffing result in fewer medical errors, better recoveries, reduced complications, and higher patient satisfaction.

This year, PASNAP has added more than 3,000 nurses at five area hospitals — Hahnemann, St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children and Einstein Medical Center, all in Philadelphia; along with Delaware County Memorial Hospital in Drexel Hill and Pottstown Memorial Hospital in Pottstown — to its union.

Patty Eakin, president of PASNAP, said the nurses at all the hospitals cited a desire to win improved staffing standards in their hospitals as a key reason for wanting to join the union this year. "Nurses at the patient bedsides want to be able to do their jobs safely," she said.

The rally was also attended by a half dozen elected officials from Philadelphia City Council and the state legislature who spoke in support of the work nurses do.

The biggest reaction from the nurses came when they cheered City Councilwoman Cherelle Parker after she said, "Our public health and public safety should come before anybody's bottom line."

Asked about the demonstration, officials at Hahnemann University Hospital released a statement that read: "Hahnemann University Hospital has been negotiating for several months with the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals and remains committed to reaching a collective bargaining agreement. As we move through this process our focus remains, as it always has been, to provide high-quality, patient-centered care to those we serve."

You can read my in-depth story published this week about the surge in nurse union activity at area hospitals here.

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal