1. careers
2. nursing

Spring 2015
Volume 87 No. 1
FEATURE NEWS:
Stand up to workplace violence
Also in this Issue
• MN study links nurse staffing to patient outcomes Page 5
• Hearing shines light on hospital harassment Page 7
• Nurses Day on the Hill 2015 Page 8
• Call for MNA elections Page 16
Page 2
Stand up to workplace
violence
People throughout Minnesota and the
nation were shocked when they saw a video
of the horrific patient attack on nurses at St.
John’s Hospital in Maplewood last November.
They saw that nurses put their lives on
the line every day. They saw the bravery of
the nurses and other staff involved in that
attack.
MNA members know all too well the
dangers of their jobs. Nurses are frequently physically and verbally assaulted by patients and visitors.
Too often, nurses have dismissed those
attacks as “part of the job.”
MNA members are saying it’s time to
change that mind set.
Amy Schmidt, who was charge nurse
the night of the St. John’s attack, says she was like many other RNs before that
night.
“I’ve been hit, I’ve been pinched, I’ve gone home with bruises,” said Schmidt.
“At the time you say it’s minor, but it could be a sign that something more is going
to happen.”
Schmidt says the attack made her an activist: she needs to advocate for workplace safety so no one else goes through what she and her co-workers did last
November.
“I firmly believe that if you don’t speak up when things like this happen, no
one will realize there is a problem and it won’t be addressed,” she told members
at MNA’s Day on the Hill on Feb. 9.
Gwynn Pepin, co-chair of the MNA RN bargaining unit at St. John’s, says
workplaces need to have a plan in place to deal with situations safely.
Rep. Joe Atkins has introduced a bill that addresses workplace safety issues.
House File 1087 and its companion Senate File 1071 authored by Senator Chuck
Wiger require each hospital in the state to develop a workplace violence prevention plan in coordination with registered nurses and other healthcare workers at
the hospital and submit that plan to the state and local law enforcement.
Each healthcare worker would be entitled to training on violence prevention
and would be protected from retaliation for reporting incidents of violence.
The state would begin to collect data on incidents of violence so we can all
better understand how violence affects the workplace and how hospitals can better protect patients, visitors, and healthcare workers.
“We need to stand up and say ‘no more,’” said Pepin.
View a video featuring Schmidt and Pepin on MNA’s Youtube channel at
www.youtube.com/user/mnnurses.
2
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
Minnesota Nursing Accent
Minnesota Nurses Association
345 Randolph Avenue, Ste. 200
Saint Paul, MN 55102
651-414-2800/800-536-4662
Spring 2015
PUBLISHER
Rose Roach
MANAGING EDITORS
Barb Brady
Chris Reinke
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President:
Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN
1st Vice President:
Mary McGibbon, RN
2nd Vice President:
Gail Olson, RN
Secretary:
Deb Haugen, RN
Treasurer:
Peter Danielson, RN
Directors:
Sandie Anderson, RN
Elizabeth Binkert, RN
Lori Christian, RN
Kate Danielson, RN
Patricia Dwyer, RN
Stacy Enger, RN
Katie Grams, LPN
Diane Johnson, RN
Carolyn Jorgenson, RN
Kathleen Moore, RN
Barb Martin, RN
Judy Russell-Martin, RN
Candy Matzke, RN
Office Hours:
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Minnesota Nursing Accent
(ISSN 0026-5586) is published four times
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S COLUMN
Healthcare is a human right
Gandhi once said, “It is health that is real wealth and not
pieces of gold and silver.” How true and yet how ironic.
A major component of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is
the establishment of insurance “exchanges” that sell plans
that would seem to reflect the value of an individual’s life
based on what that individual can afford: a bronze, silver,
gold or platinum plan. It seems America has figured out how
to connect “gold and silver” to health.
The ACA tackled a few of the profit-first health insurance
industry’s most egregious abuses by eliminating their ability
to refuse to provide coverage for pre-existing conditions or
to create arbitrary “lifetime maximum” expenditures by the
insurance company; and it allowed children to stay under a
parent’s insurance plan until age 26. Most importantly, the
ACA expanded eligibility for Medicaid, a government safety
net that has been a lifeline for Americans who simply can’t
afford “free market” healthcare. Even with those positive
changes, the ACA is making very little difference in the lives
of most people because there’s no change in the way we pay
for healthcare.
According to the Library of Congress’ Congressional Research Service, “Disparities in health create significant burdens on health care providers and on society. The costs to
provide health care to a population are directly related to the
general health of the resident population.”
Good health is everything – it means you’re able to be a productive citizen and it increases your quality of life while positively impacting the quality of life for the entire community.
By establishing a for-profit, market-driven system for
healthcare, we have hindered our ability to share in good
health.
That doesn’t make good fiscal sense and it perpetuates a
society that relegates us to blaming one another for a healthcare system that in itself is dysfunctional, fragmented, and
dangerous.
The question really is: who are we as a people? Who do we
want to be? Under what government structure, what ideology, what religion, is it acceptable to let people suffer and die
because they can’t afford health insurance?
The healthcare debate has produced some very complex
questions, arguments, and concerns; but the central issue
isn’t really a technical one, it is a moral one.
“By establishing a for-profit,
market-driven system for healthcare,
we have hindered our ability to share
in good health.”
Our elected officials need to see
that healthcare is a public good. It is
about protecting the public’s health
and they must have the political
will to invest in needed services for
the whole population.
And we do that by improving
and expanding the healthcare system we already have in place that
provides public financing for privately delivered care - and that system is Medicare.
Medicare pools money and pays for healthcare directly; it
pays for people to get the care they need when they need it;
and is an efficient allocation of healthcare dollars because it
removes the fragmentation and administrative waste that exists in our current system.
On July 30, 2015, MNA will celebrate the 50th anniversary
of the signing of Medicare and you’re invited. Please mark
your calendars now and watch for details as we prepare to
make the case for healthcare as a human right.
May 7
MNA
Open House for
Nurses Week
Education sessions, drawings,
food, information on scholarships, mini
pension workshops from 8 - 5 p.m.
Metro Steward Meeting commencing
from 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Nominations for Pension Committee
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
3
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
The time is right
by Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN
The reason unions exist – and why we must fight for them
– was driven home to me over four days in February.
I listened to – and was a witness in – a National Labor Relations Board hearing into unfair labor practice charges filed
against North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale for retaliating against union members who took part in an informational
picket last June. The hospital’s actions were outrageous and
mind-boggling.
MNA and SEIU Healthcare MN filed unfair labor practice
charges after the hospital fired one employee; revoked work
agreements and forced loyal employees with more than 30
years at North Memorial to work weekends; and repeatedly interrogated and threatened staff about their union activities after
they participated in informational picketing to draw attention
to their concerns about unsafe staffing.
The National Labor Relations Board held a hearing in February after issuing a formal complaint finding the hospital violated the National Labor Relations Act. See the story on Page 7
for more.
At the hearing, MNA and SEIU Healthcare members and
staff detailed just how the hospital retaliated against them – for
exercising their legal rights to participate in a peaceful event to
protest staffing plans that could endanger patient safety.
Testimony showed just how vindictive the hospital was.
Fortunately, MNA and SEIU Healthcare members have
their unions to back them up so they can continue to speak up
for patients and safe patient care.
We must advocate for our patients everywhere we can – in
our workplaces and in the public arena.
It’s our right and responsibility as citizens in a democracy.
Nurses have a long history of fighting for patients and social
justice – let’s keep that tradition going!
That includes talking to elected officials – legislators tell us
over and over that they need to hear from nurses about important issues like safe patient staffing and workplace violence prevention. One way you can talk to them is by sharing your unsafe staffing reports. Your stories about chronic and persistent
understaffing and the impact on patients are critical. It’s important to send the forms whether the situation is mitigated or
not. Knowing what mitigated the unsafe staffing situation may
help others in the future. And success deserves to be shared as
well as concerns. When we share successes, we win.
“We must advocate for our
patients everywhere we can – in our
workplaces and in the public arena.”
4
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
About 150 MNA members
shared their stories with their legislators in person in February. The
2015 MNA Day on the Hill was a
powerful experience for first-timers
and for members who frequently
talk to their elected officials.
They found legislators were
very receptive and welcoming.
They want to listen to their constituents. They want to hear real-life
examples of what’s going on in their districts and how to improve conditions.
We followed our visits by giving more than 2,100 unsafe
staffing reports to Health Commissioner Ed Ehlinger.
Members came away inspired and ready to keep advocating for their patients and the nursing profession because they
saw they can make a difference.
You can make a difference whether you attended Day on
the Hill or not. Meet with your legislators and attend town
hall meetings in your district. The more they know you, the
more they understand what you stand for and why they need
to stand up for nursing issues.
Over more than 100 years, MNA has fought for the safety
of our patients. We earned the public’s trust. People know we
will advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves
- that will never change. This was exemplified by the nurses
in St. Paul and will be throughout Minnesota in the coming
weeks and months.
As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The time is always right
to do what is right.”
Call for Nominations
In November of 2015, you will be asked to
vote for the leaders of your union,
the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA).
Watch for the Call for Candidates form
on the Member Portal in early April for your
opportunity to submit your name to be
placed on the ballot.
You are strongly encouraged to consider
running for a leadership position and
become involved in making a difference
in the future of the organization.
MN study links nurse staffing
to patient outcomes
More nurses means better care.
The Minnesota Department of Health
(MDH) spent one year and $129,000
studying nurse staffing and patient outcomes and found “strong evidence” that
correlates patient mortality, failures to
rescue, and patient falls with poor staffing levels.
“Nurses fought for this study at the
Capitol in 2013 because they knew that
a rigorous, objective study of nurse staffing would show patients do better when
enough nurses are on duty,” said Linda
Hamilton, president of the Minnesota
Nurses Association. Hundreds of nurses
came to the Capitol over the 2013 session
to request legislators pass the Staffing
Plan Disclosure Act, which Governor
Mark Dayton signed. The law required
the health department to commit to a
two-year study, but also required hospitals to report their staffing plans and actual staffing to the state as well as on a
public website.
MDH also found “strong evidence”
that other care process outcomes such as
drug administration errors, missed nursing care, and a patient’s length of stay
are linked to lower nurse staffing levels.
Patients are more likely to get the wrong
medication or medication too late as well
MNA Organizational Goals
and Priorities for 2015
MNA Mission Statement
as stay longer in the hospitals where
nurse staffing is low.
“Frontline nurses are worried
about their patients,” Hamilton said.
“They have been telling their hospital
managers and administrators that the
quality of care isn’t the same when
nurses are taking care of too many patients at one time. If you want patients
to get better, you can’t cut corners on
staffing.”
Nurses are disappointed, however,
because hospitals withheld information that the Minnesota Legislature directed them to provide. In response to
the Legislature’s directive for a robust,
Minnesota-focused analysis, hospitals agreed to provide MDH with data
from a subset of hospitals. Only one
bothered to even respond.
“The hospitals rebuked nurses,
patients, and legislators by refusing
to supply vital information that could
improve the quality of patient care and
the very safety of patients,” Hamilton
said. “Are they just unwilling to cooperate with a study they themselves
agreed to with our lawmakers? Republicans and Democrats alike. Either
way, shame on them.”
MN Study cont. on Page 9
It’s as American as apple pie: taking an active
role in our democracy.
You can make a difference for safe staffing, workplace violence prevention, patient safety,
and other important nursing issues – come to one of MNA’s Wednesday ‘mini lobby days.’
Small groups of nurses get together on Wednesdays through May 19 to visit their
legislators in St. Paul to share stories and advocate for patients and nursing.
Legislators listen when nurses talk – we’re the most respected profession in the country!
Contact Geri Katz at Geri.katz@mnnurses.org or Eileen Gavin at Eileen.gavin@mnnurses.org
to ‘adopt a Wednesday’ or for more information about having a voice in our democracy.
1.Promote the professional, economic, and personal well-being of nurses.
2. Uphold and advance excellence, integrity, and autonomy in the practice of nursing.
3.Advocate for quality care that is accessible and affordable for all.
MNA Purpose
The purpose of the Minnesota Nurses Association,
a union of professional nurses with unrestricted RN
membership, shall be to advance the professional,
economic, and general well-being of nurses and
to promote the health and well-being of the public.
These purposes shall be unrestricted by considerations of age, color, creed, disability, gender, health
status, lifestyle, nationality, race, religion, or sexual
orientation.
MNA Strategic Goals
1.MNA empowers registered nurses to use their collective strength, knowledge, and experience to advance and enhance safe and professional nursing practice, nursing leadership, and the community health and well-being.
2.MNA exemplifies a positive, powerful union of professional nurses that advances nursing and patient interests.
3.MNA promotes effective RN staffing and safe working conditions for both patients and registered nurses in direct patient care, in policy and political arenas, and in our communities.
4.MNA increases membership and participation as a union of professional nurses through effective internal and external organizing, member activism, education, and mobilization.
5.MNA actively promotes social justice,
cultural diversity, and the health, security, and well-being of all in its organizational programs and in collaboration with partner organizations.
6.MNA, in solidarity with the National Nurses United and the AFL-CIO, will promote the rights of patients, nurses, and workers across the United States.
2015 Organizational Priorities
1. All activities of the MNA will incorporate the principles of the Main Street Contract approved
by the MNA House of Delegates in 2011.
2. Position MNA for negotiations from strength across Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
3. Organize to increase MNA membership and continue to increase solidarity and participation
of membership locally, regionally, and nationally.
4. Work to elect politicians who will implement nurse-friendly public policy, including safe staffing, a healthcare system that includes everyone and excludes no one, and single payor healthcare legislation.
5. Build solidarity to promote and support NNU and the AFL-CIO to advance labor nursing issues.
6. Assess risks and actively oppose any attacks on nursing practice and workers’ rights, including any attempts of deskilling of the Professional nurse’s scope of practice and
right-to-work legislation.
7.Continue MNA’s campaign for patient safety to ensure the integrity of nursing practice, nursing practice environments, and advance safe
patient staffing standards and principles.
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
5
LABOR ADVOCACY
Deer River RNs ratify contract
RNs at Essentia Health in Deer River will
remember 2014 negotiations as the year of the
“contraband cake.”
Bargaining started last September when members served a cake decorated with the MNA logo
to passers-by in an area near the hospital lobby to
kick off negotiations. Administration asked them
to leave and canceled the next day’s negotiating
session.
The “contraband cake incident” helped unite members who saw that a good contract is achievable only if they stood together.
They ended up with a contract that improves compensation, stems the tide of RNs
leaving for better-paying jobs in nearby hospitals, and strengthens union solidarity.
Keys to the success of the contract ratified in January include keeping members
up to date by phone, text, in person and on the member portal on MNA’s website;
showing solidarity by wearing buttons and stickers, and many becoming stewards.
In addition to having a good contract, the unit now has a better working relationship with Essentia. The hospital saw that it needed to invest in nurses in order to keep
the hospital healthy and agreed to the contract.
Grand Marais contract benefits RNs, patients
Holding steadfast for what’s right paid off for RNs at Cook County North Shore
Hospital in Grand Marais.
The 20-member bargaining unit has a new contract, following a January 2015
arbitration ruling in favor of the nurses’ positions.
“We got a good contract because we held fast to what we needed for everyone’s
benefit,” said bargaining unit co-chair Cindy Woltman-Giles. “We said we deserve
better and our patients deserve better.”
“We weren’t going to settle for anything less for our patients or our members,” said
co-chair Renee Benson.
The two said the new contract will help retain staff.
“Nurses want to stay here,” said Benson. “We love and care about the people we
work with. One of the best and worst things about working at our hospital is that our
patients and co-workers are our friends, neighbors, and relatives. We have a personal
investment with these people.”
MNA members built a relationship with the newly formed SEIU Healthcare unit,
which represents other staff at the hospital.
The bargaining teams met jointly to discuss mutual support in negotiations and
going forward.
“They settled their contract before we did,” said Woltman-Giles. “It was nice to
see we had a lot of the same issues.”
The two groups will continue to work together in the future to create a united front.
Thief River Falls RNs
help the needy
MNA members in Thief River Falls help
out at a local soup kitchen and call attention to the need for security personnel at
their hospital on Dec. 16.
6
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
MNA
WE
supports
ARE ONE
SEIU
Healthcare
MNA members wore “WE ARE
ONE” stickers to show support for metro SEIU Healthcare Minnesota members as they fought for safe staffing,
work-life balance, and health and safety
in their contract negotiations this winter.
In February, all hospitals except Allina
reached a TA.
SEIU Healthcare’s efforts to advance
working conditions, to respect seniority
rights, as well as to provide livable wages and benefits sharply contrasted with
management’s proposals to move back
in time. Management sought dramatic
take-backs, including the elimination
of guaranteed medical leave and changes to insurance benefits for part-time
workers.
In 2010 bargaining, MNA nurses saw
their employers make many of the same
proposals that Twin Cities SEIU members saw in negotiations the year before.
It is likely that the proposals we see in
2016 bargaining will contain many of
the same concessions that SEIU fought
this year.
By standing together, we can send a
message to hospitals that they should
not make their profits on the backs of
the workers. We can tell management
that it’s time to move forward by improving working conditions and that we
will stand together with SEIU Healthcare members in their contract negotiations new and in future years.
LABOR ADVOCACY
NLRB hearing shines light on hospital harassment
Testimony by MNA and SEIU Healthcare MN members and staff paint a disturbing picture of how
hospitals retaliate against staff for engaging in legally protected concerted activities.
The testimony came at a National Labor Relations Board hearing in February on charges that North
Memorial Medical Center of Robbinsdale intimidated and harassed union members who participated in a
June 2014 informational picket drawing attention to potentially unsafe staffing conditions.
One by one, North Memorial staff took the witness stand to detail how the hospital engaged in illegal
activities after the June 2014 picket.
The hospital fired one employee, revoked work agreements and forced employees to work weekends, repeatedly
interrogated staff about their union activities, warned employees and union staff that talking about unions was prohibited and threatened to
file charges if discussions continued.
The four-day hearing was the result of unfair labor practice charges that MNA
and SEIU Healthcare filed against the hospital in the summer and fall of 2014.
Following an investigation, the NLRB issued a complaint finding North Memorial
engaged in a pattern of harassment and retaliation against hospital staff for their
participation in the picketing.
The judge who heard the case will issue a decision after reviewing post-hearing briefs.
A mix of traditional and new
tactics win contract in Red Wing
MNA members at Mayo Clinic
Health System in Red Wing ratified a
new contract in February, after several
months of traditional solidarity activities and taking advantage of electronic
communications.
It was the first time all members were
so involved in negotiations.
They wore stickers and red scrubs, packed meet and greet
events to support their team, presented a petition signed by
nearly all members, showed up at negotiating sessions to
speak out against management concessions, and a large group
of staff nurses met with the CNO to deliver the message that
it was time for the hospital to compromise and settle the contract.
“It was a surprise to the hospital,” Bargaining Team member Stacey Phelps said. “They didn’t expect us to be so united
and solid.”
Members’ voices were heard from the beginning, with
meetings where leaders met with nurses in the cafeteria. Members voted for the bargaining team and submitted issue forms
to generate proposal ideas. The election was followed up with
a survey to establish the top issues for the negotiations.
“This agreement reflects the true democratic process,”
Bargaining Team member Bev Mancilman said. “We made
sure the members’ top priorities were in the new contract. The
majority spoke and we listened.”
They also kept members up to date on negotiations progress, mainly through electronic communications, and “lunchtime rounding” on negotiation days.
A private Facebook page was popular with members, who
could find updates any time of the day.
“That’s where members said they got their information,”
Bargaining Team member Greg Miller said. “We also texted
and emailed members to spread the word about what was happening, and to get nurses to show up to actions.”
The new contract includes a wage scale that exceeds Metro
wages, a hard cap on mandatory low census, retains the incentive pay system, and requires Mayo to negotiate nurses’ choice
of color and print for their scrubs in the next contract.
Affiliations strengthen all
MNA is now affiliated with five of the six Minnesota AFLCIO local labor councils. The MNA Board of Directors voted to
affiliate with more councils earlier this year.
“Affiliations make us stronger,” said MNA Executive Director Rose Roach. “Unions are under attack as never before, and
we must all stand together.”
MNA has affiliates at the local, state, and national levels.
On the state level, MNA is affiliated with the Minnesota AFLCIO. MNA members sit on the AFL-CIO’s executive council,
help set legislative priorities, and stay in tune with everyone’s labor struggles. MNA is affiliated with the National Nurses United, which advocates for patients and nurses on the national level.
MNA members are encouraged to get involved with the local
labor councils as well.
“They work on issues in their local communities,” said
Roach. “MNA members can work cooperatively with the local
councils on labor issues and volunteer opportunities as united
community leaders.”
MNA needs to participate in the full house of labor at all levAffiliations strengthen all cont. on Page 15
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
7
AT THE CAPITOL
Nurses Day on the Hill 2015
MNA members took their advocacy for their patients from the bedside to the State
Capitol at the annual Day on the Hill in February.
About 150 RNs from all corners of Minnesota came to St. Paul to meet directly
with their legislators to explain why a Safe Patient Standard and workplace violence
prevention legislation, among others, are desperately needed.
MNA members told their personal stories of instances where patient safety was
threatened because of understaffing, and times when they were subjected to workplace violence themselves.
They crowded into a room at the Minnesota Department of Health to deliver more
than 2,100 ‘valentines’ – Concern for Safe Staffing Forms filed in 2014 documenting
situations where patients were at risk due to low staffing levels.
Dozens of RNs lined up to share their stories at an emotional meeting with Health
Commissioner Dr. Ed Ehlinger.
“We are bringing these valentines from nurses on day shift, night shift, holiday
shift, weekends,” said MNA President Linda Hamilton. “Here’s proof that we need
more nurses. We want to do what’s best for our patients.”
“The hospitals aren’t giving you the information you need, so we will,” said oncology nurse Theresa Peterson, RN at North Memorial Hospital. “When (cancer) patients need medications, it’s an hourly thing. So if you have five other patients, they
don’t get seen.”
Commissioner Ehlinger promised that he and his staff would read the forms and
use them to inform their policy discussions.
Day on the Hill 2015 kicked off with remarks from MNA and National Nurses
United leaders.
NNU Public Policy Director Michael Lighty brought the national perspective,
urging MNA members to use their “passionate commitment” for their patients when
advocating for change at the state and national levels to “transform our country.”
St. John’s Hospital nurse Amy Schmidt spoke publicly for the
first time about the patient attack on nurses on her unit last November. She described how the attack unfolded and how it changed
the lives of everyone involved. Schmidt said every hospital should
have a plan to deal with crises. “I urge all nurses to get involved
and stop thinking that workplace violence is
part of our jobs. It is not.”
Rep. Joe Atkins told members their voices
do make a difference. “There’s not a legislator who doesn’t respect
what you do. You have a case to make.”
He promised to fight for safe patient staffing and workplace
violence prevention legislation.
8
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
“Every action we take,
no matter how small
– every conversation,
email, letter, text, phone
call, tweet, Facebook
post, voting in elections
- is a step toward protecting unions, our patients, our communities and our profession,” MNA President Linda Hamilton
told members. “Your presence here this
week and your activism back home – are
the key to our success.”
MNA Executive Director Rose Roach
said nurses must get involved at the Capitol
to “change the formula
of profits over patients
to patients over profits.
The public knows that
healthcare has become
a profit-first industry,
but we also know that they trust nurses
more than any other profession. We are
the best people to push back on corporate
healthcare and stand up for the delivery
of high-quality, affordable, accessible
healthcare for all to ensure people get the
health care they need, not just what they
can afford.”
AT THE CAPITOL
Nursing students get early start
on activism
Future nurses learned the importance of advocating for patients in the public
arena as well as at the bedside at MNA’s Student Day on the Hill Feb. 25.
About 400 nursing students and staff from all corners of Minnesota came to
St. Paul to talk to their legislators about nursing issues after hearing from MNA
members and former lawmakers about the importance of activism.
It was the first time many had heard about the connection between politics and
nursing.
“We do have a voice – just a phone call or email makes a difference,” said one
student nurse.
The nursing students also learned the importance of unions and what MNA
does for the profession and patient care.
MN Study from Page 5
Even without the granular data needed for a robust study, MDH researchers
still were able to review documentation
and literature from respected researchers
that showed strong correlations between
nurse staffing and patient outcomes.
Clearly, patients need nurses to be there
to ensure medication is administered
properly and on time as well as monitor
and assess them to rescue them and prevent falls.
“Thanks to the Minnesota Department of Health, we know that patient
safety and patient care is an issue in Minnesota. If we’re committed to quality
care in Minnesota, we have to act,” Hamilton said. “We can no longer say nurses
don’t play a part in a patient’s recovery.”
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
9
MNA MEMBERS IN ACTION
MNA member makes a difference in Liberia
Every nurse should take the opportunity to do volunteer work overseas – you help
people, you gain insight into other cultures
and you meet the nicest people.
That’s according to Dan Shindelar, an
RN at Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul who recently spent six weeks in Liberia working directly with Ebola patients at an Ebola Treatment Unit in Bong County, and then working
with people in communities “in the bush” in
River Cess County.
He first went to Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, then
to Bong County where he and other volunteers received PPE
training and worked with Ebola patients in a “hot zone (confirmed Ebola cases).”
“No hot water, no paved roads, you pretty much ate rice
for every meal,” he said. “We had three days of training and
then four days working in an Ebola Treatment Unit in a hot
zone.”
Dan says the personal protective equipment – what he
calls space suits - were extremely uncomfortable and hot. It
was 85 degrees and
85% humidity.
“I poured sweat
out of my boots and
had a difficult time
keeping the goggles
from fogging over,”
he said. “I was never in a suit more
than two hours.”
The protocol for donning and doffing the suits was very
meticulous, so caregivers felt safe. It took 15 minutes, two people, three pairs of gloves, a hood, mask and goggles to get into
a suit.
Caring for Ebola patients in the suits is a “hard way to be
a nurse,” said Dan. “You really feel removed from your patient.
Then to step on the other side and look at what it’s like from
their perspective. The thing that came to me – it must have felt
to them like aliens landed and took people away and they don’t
come back.”
There wasn’t a lot caregivers could do for their patients.
“The only thing we could do was isolate and support symptoms,” he said. “And hope the body can get through that.”
They did blood draws and IVs. There were few pain- or
fever-reducing medications - few medications of any type.
Dan also did ambulance runs to pick up people on twotrack roads, “Until you see someone on the side of the road
– you get out and talk to them, keeping a safe distance.”
The hardest part was seeing the children in either confirmed or suspected wards.
“You try to figure a way to allow them to be kids,” Dan
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The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
said. “There’s nothing for them to do.”
He brought soccer balls and coloring
books for them.
It was especially hard because he was in
a “space suit” and didn’t seem human to the
children.
“They’re sleeping on plastic mattresses with two buckets for toilet facilities,” he
said. Nurses could be with a patient no more
than two hours, in which time they hurried to
hook up IVs to rehydrate patients, give them
medication, food, and rehydration drinks, and provide as much
comfort as possible.
“I have lots of empathy for how scary it must have been
for the patients,” he said. I had to endure the heat and protocols, but the patients were there for days.”
Dan then went to a village seven hours away where Doctors Without Borders had shut down its Ebola treatment unit,
declaring the area Ebola-free. Dan and others did contact tracing and education there.
Dan lived in the village for three weeks, making friends
and learning to appreciate their culture.
“We had a local driver and a company-provided Land
Cruiser,” Dan said. “We went to 13 clinics to survey what they
had, how they did Ebola training, and asking what they needed.
We had no maps; the drivers knew the roads, which consisted
of narrow two-tracks, so drivers were constantly beeping their
horns to warn other locals walking or riding motorcycles they
were near. There were probably 1,000 people in that village in
15 houses. No one owned a vehicle of any kind. To get cell
phone reception, I had to walk 15 minutes up a hill to get spotty
reception.”
Dan says people welcomed him with open arms and made
him feel part of the
family.
“I saw the difficulty of the conditions they lived
in, how family- and
community-oriented they are. They
had nothing there
you or I would recognize, but they had happy lives.”
Dan says he’ll continue to volunteer overseas, and he believes all nurses should too.
“I do feel I made a difference,” he says. “I grew a lot myself in understanding conditions of the world while helping
people. It’s shocking how much we have that we don’t really
need.”
MNA MEMBERS IN ACTION
Climate change is a nursing issue
Climate change is causing major
health problems around the world, and
nurses need to join the fight to curtail the
harm it’s causing.
That’s what MNA member Lara Norkus-Crampton took away from the international People’s Climate Summit she
attended in Peru in December.
She was part of a delegation of NNU
nurses who traveled to Peru to discuss climate change as a major public health crisis.
Norkus-Crampton, an RN at Methodist Hospital, met with other activists from
around the world on climate change and
health, including members of the Peruvian Federation of Nurses; and marched
with nearly 250,000 others activists to call
for climate justice.
“The signs are clear,” Norkus-Crampton said. “A global climate crisis is here
and nurses need to do more than watch.
We need to be part of the solution, get involved and do whatever we can to prevent
any more damage to our environment and
people.”
According to NNU, more than 8 million deaths around the world are blamed
on air pollution; and warming temperatures have accelerated the spread of many
diseases like Ebola, malaria, dengue, yellow fever, and Lyme Disease.
Norkus-Crampton said nurses “add
the voice of conscience. You have to
speak up and show that something hurts
people and demand change.”
Some of the highlights of the summit
included meeting activists from unions
and the environmental movement from
around the world.
“We need to make sure we don’t see
this as a dilemma that can’t be changed because it’s too hard,” she said. “At the summit, we agreed to go back to our communities and start addressing climate change
locally. We need to treat resources as finite – not infinite. Start with what’s doable
right now, like recycling and composting
to reduce emissions and pollution.”
Since returning home, Norkus-Crampton has been doing just that.
She is working on zero waste personally
and in the community.
“In my opinion, we can’t afford to just
wait for the U.N. or Congress to do something while climate changes are accelerating,” she said. “We all need to do our part
to do what we can now to make a difference – starting in our own backyards.”
Duluth nurse
takes ‘incredible
opportunity to
serve’
Duluth nurse Danielle Rodgers
doesn’t know where she’s going, doesn’t
know what she’s doing, but she can’t
wait to get there. The St. Luke’s float
pool nurse expects to set sail in April for
Central America as part of the RNRN
program.
RNRN, which sends nurses to help
disaster victims, is aiding Project Hope
to give routine but rare medical care to
populations in Belize, Guatemala, Jamaica, and other third-world nations. Rodgers will be on one of the two hospital
ships in the Navy’s fleet, the ships Comfort and Mercy.
“We’re not walking into a disaster
zone,” Rodgers said. “We’re still serving a great population in need. You
shouldn’t have to wait for a disaster to
go help people. There’s so much need.
Anything anybody can do to help will be
appreciated.”
Rodgers leaves in early April and
returns in the first week of May. She’s
set to leave for the ship from a port in
Miami. She said she’s been slotted as a
med/surg nurse to help post-op patients
or adult medical patients. She has a degree in public health and also hopes to
be able to do some public health teaching
while she’s there.
“These are high priority regions,”
Rodgers said. “In Belize, the percent of
practitioners is really low. There are very
few doctors and a lot of people in need.”
According to the World Bank, Belize
has .8 doctors and 1.96 nurses per 1,000
people. By comparison, the US has 2.49
doctors and 9.6 nurses per 1,000 people.
Other Central American nations have so
few medical professionals, the ratio can’t
even be calculated.
Rodgers
said she was
moved by some
of the patients
she saw helped
by
Project
Hope. One of
those stories included the effect
of a relatively
simple surgery
on a little girl who was born with six fingers and six toes.
“That’s the stuff I want to see. Stuff
that transforms people’s lives. That little
girl would’ve been an outcast for the rest
of her life,” Rodgers said. “But it will
be more of a life-changing experience for
me than the people we serve.
“People ask me ‘Why go there?’ and
I say ‘Why not?’ Why wouldn’t I want
to do that? And you should too. It’s so
easy to do,” Rodgers said. “It’s a chance
to help people who have nothing. It’s
just an incredible opportunity to serve.”
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
11
HEALTH & SAFETY
Health and Safety Committee Update
From Ebola to a patient attack on
nurses at St. John’s Hospital, the health
and safety of healthcare workers has been
in the headlines in the last few months.
MNA’s Health and Safety Committee is working to make sure Minnesota
nurses have safe work environments on
several fronts.
Ebola
Ebola may have fallen out of the
headlines, but the disease is not gone and
we know other infectious diseases will
arise in the future. We must learn the lessons from last year and be prepared for
that next threat. MNA and NNU raised
the national consciousness for the need
for optimal personal protective equipment and ongoing training for healthcare
workers treating patients with Ebola and
other infectious diseases, and we are not
letting up.
Several Minnesota RNs went to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta to
observe and learn the specific protocols
they use when taking care of Ebola patients. Emory is one of the top care centers for Ebola patients in the U.S. They learned a great deal and will
share it with MNA members in the near
future.
MNA’s website www.mnnurses.org
has an Ebola toolkit for any members
looking for more information.
Workplace violence prevention
MNA has been a leading advocate
for workplace violence prevention legislation for many years. The bill introduced
by Rep. Joe Atkins and others has very
strong language to address the workplace
violence that has been so prevalent in our
workplaces.
Please be ready to respond to calls
to support this important bill as it moves
through the Legislature. Everyone needs
to understand that workplace violence
“is not part of the job.”
You can read more about this bill and
workplace safety on Page 2.
MNA will offer education opportunities later this year.
Some Minnesota hospitals, including
Fairview Riverside in Minneapolis, have
response teams to assist any staff member
who has been injured on the job.
The Peer to Peer Response Team offers emotional help at the time of the incident as well as later. Please contact Candy
Matzke at cmatzke1@fairview.org for
further information or if you are interested in starting this program in your facility.
If you’d like more information about
workplace violence prevention, consider
attending a workshop on Innovative Approaches to the Management of Aggressive Behaviors in Healthcare. It’s May
11, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Gorecki
Center at the College of St. Benedict in
St. Joseph. The deadline to register is
May 6 and the cost is $99. Details are online at www.centracare.com/events.
RN Health
Patient health depends on nurses’
health. We need to stay healthy! Eat
healthy, drink plenty of fluids, meditate
for five minutes on your break, do yoga,
exercise, and get enough rest. It’s easier
said than done, but it’s very important for
all of us!
Candy Matzke
Director, MNA Board of Directors
MNA Health & Safety Committee
Nurses Peer Support Network assists nurses in recovery
Minnesota nurses have a new resource to help them
deal with addiction and substance use disorder issues. The
Nurses Peer Support Network offers support for nurses living with the disease of addiction.
MNA member Kayla Benzinger is a founding member
of the new nonprofit, which provides peer support group
meetings around the state, education, and outreach.
“Minnesota didn’t have a peer network until now,”
Benzinger said. “Other states offer peer programs, and it
seemed that Minnesota should do something too.”
Benzinger and the other founders researched other
states’ networks as they developed Minnesota’s NPSNetwork.
“Our main focus is to reach out to nurses and let them
know we’re available,” she said. “It’s a place for nurses to
talk to other nurses so they can help each other.”
The 2014 MNA House of Delegates adopted a resolution supporting the NPSNetwork and the Board of Directors
donated $10,000 to expand and continue this much-needed
program.
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The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
Peer support groups are meeting in four locations in
Minnesota and plan to expand as needed.
The network is looking for nurses to volunteer to be
on committees and the board of directors. Visit www.npsnetwork-mn.org for more information and how to apply for
committee and board positions.
“It’s time that we as a profession start taking care of
ourselves, and each other,” Benzinger said. “Our fellow
nurses will continue to suffer alone unless we make sure
they know they are not alone, and we will support them in
their recovery, just as we would provide support if they had
diabetes or cancer. Change needs to start within our profession. Lives depend upon it.”
Member Survey Committee Update
In 2013, MNA’s House of Delegates passed a Resolution calling for a survey of MNA’s members to evaluate
member satisfaction.
The survey was conducted in August and September
2014 in two formats: a scientific phone poll conducted
by an independent polling agency that polled a randomly
drawn representative sample of 500 MNA members;
and an online survey open to all members who did not participate in the phone poll.
296 members participated in the online survey.
After reviewing the results from both the phone survey
and the online survey, the Committee identified six key areas they recommended the MNA Board of Directors further
address in an effort to improve members’ overall satisfaction.
The Committee members agreed that anything under
a 70% overall rating was the cutoff point for being further
addressed as an organization. These six areas are:
1. Communications with members
2. Workplace, grievance, and contract
3. NNU
4. Education
5. Healthcare
6. Local leaders
The Member Survey Committee has provided initial
recommendations to the MNA Board.
The Board will review these recommendations and
assign them to appropriate MNA member and staff groups.
A progress report will be provided at the 2015 House of
Delegates.
MNA Member Survey Committee
Sandie Anderson Lori Christian
Stacy Enger
Carolyn Jorgenson
Barb Martin
Candy Matzke
Mary McGibbon Gail Olson
2015 Honors & Awards Nominations
Deadline is July 15
Honor your co-workers who go above and
beyond for patients and the nursing profession.
Nominate them for MNA honors and awards.
We all know a registered nurse who is an
outstanding practitioner, an inspiring educator
or mentor, an unfailing supporter of nurses in
collective bargaining, who models leadership,
or is a researcher who has made a real difference
for patients.
MNA’s Honors and Awards recognizes the
achievement and dedication of members who
deserve a special ‘thank you.’
They’ll be honored at MNA’s honors and
awards ceremony during the annual convention
in October.
Visit MNA’s website at www.mnnurses.org
for details about each award and how to
nominate an unsung hero!
Have a Voice in MNA
Join a committee or commission and shape our union
Several have openings right now, including:
• Commission on Nursing Practice and Education
• Commission on Governmental Affairs
• MNA Foundation
• Membership/Organizing Committee
• Committee on Elections
• Health and Safety Committee
• Honors and Awards Committee
The functions and responsibilities of each group are
explained in MNA’s bylaws; or you can contact the
MNA office at 800-536-4662 for more information.
The terms of all committees and commissions expire
December 31, 2015.
If you are interested in being appointed to one of
these groups, please contact Julie Kinsel at
Julie.Kinsel@mnnurses.org.
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
13
MNA Bylaws and Resolutions
We are inviting you at this time to submit proposals for Resolutions and changes to the MNA Bylaws.
The MNA House of Delegates will convene October 4-6 this year to consider these proposals.
Bylaws spell out the rules by which the Minnesota Nurses Association governs itself. They spell out the
powers of the House of Delegates, the Board of Directors, and other structural units. In addition, they include
rules regarding membership criteria and conducting our elections.
A Resolution is a formal expression of an opinion to be adopted by the organization.
The deadline for any individual member or structural unit to submit their proposals in writing to
MNA is 11:59 p.m. on July 15, 2015.
Guidelines for Submission of Proposals:
Proposals must be accompanied by a statement of rationale which explains the reasons why it is deemed to
be of significance and explains anticipated consequences for the Association, the profession, and the public.
If the proposal is to amend a House of Delegates Policy or position of the Association, the statement of
rationale should identify the current policy or position to be amended or, in the case of a Bylaw change,
the Article and Section of the MNA Bylaws.
Resolutions must deal with one topic and be accompanied, when appropriate, by an action plan in sufficient
detail to allow a financial impact statement to be determined. It shall also include citations for facts and
figures referenced.
Once the July 15 deadline has passed, the Bylaws Committee will review the amendments submitted for the
MNA Bylaws and the Reference Committee will review the Resolutions for completeness.
Forms for making your submissions can be found on the Member Portal under the “Forms” tab.
If you have any questions regarding submitting a Bylaw amendment or Resolution, please contact Julie
Kinsel (Julie.Kinsel@mnnurses.org) or Rose Roach (Rose.Roach@mnnurses.org) at MNA.
Reminder: The deadline for receipt of Resolutions or amendments to the MNA Bylaws for consideration at
this year’s House of Delegates is 11:59 p.m. on July 15, 2015.
For details and forms, visit MNA’s website at www.mnnurses.org.
Looking For Education Opportunities?
Take advantage of the free continuing education classes MNA offers members.
Learn the latest in nurse practice, leadership, and advocating for your
profession and patients.
APRIL
APRIL
7
23
THURSDAY
APRIL 2
Willmar
8:00 - 3:15
Unsafe Assignments
8:15 - 10:15
Representing Members
10:30 - 12:30
Mobilizing Members
1:00 - 3:00
Willmar
TUESDAY
APRIL 7
D: Leadership
11:00 - 6:15
MNA Leadership
11:15 - 1:15
Staffing and Scheduling
1:45 - 3:45
Charge Nurse
4:00 - 6:00
MNA St. Paul Office
THURSDAY
APRIL 23
A: Advocacy
8:00 - 3:15
Representing Members
8:15 - 10:15
Step-One Grievances
10:30 - 12:30
Mobilizing Members
1:00 - 3:00
MNA St. Paul Office
2
14
APRIL
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
MAY
6
MAY
13
WEDNESDAY
WEDNESAY
MAY 6
MAY 13
Bemidji
C: Mobilizing
8:00 - 3:15
11:00 - 6:15
Representing Members Mobilizing Members
8:15 - 10:15
11:15 - 1:15
New Hire Orientation
New Hire Orientation
10:30 - 12:30
1:45 - 3:45
Mobilizing Members
Safe Patient Standards
1:00 - 3:00
4:00 - 6:00
Bemidji
Coon Rapids
MAY
29
FRIDAY
MAY 29
A: Advocacy
8:00 - 3:15
Representing Members
8:15 - 10:15
Step-One Grievances
10:30 - 12:30
Mobilizing Members
1:00 - 3:00
MNA St. Paul Office
Affiliations strengthen all from Page 7
els, according to Roach.
“If we believe in the middle class and we believe that a rising
tide lifts all boats – then we have to be part of rising that tide
and help all working families. We can only do that by standing
united with our union brothers and sisters everywhere.”
MNA says goodbye to
Finance Director John Lose
When John Lose became
MNA’s first finance director in 1986,
MNA had 8,000 members, 18 employees, and paperwork was on real
paper.
When John retired after 28 years
this past February, MNA had 20,000
members, 55 employees, and most
transactions had become electronic.
MNA has changed in many
ways in the last 28 years, but John
says members’ passion for their patients and their profession
has been a constant.
“It’s been such an honor working for Minnesota nurses,”
he said. “They are so dedicated to nursing, social justice and
caring for each and every patient.”
John says his proudest accomplishment is simplifying the
dues structure, which had become very complicated over the
years.
“Most nurses don’t realize how complex it was,” he said.
The streamlined dues structure makes it simpler for members
and staff alike.
Under John’s leadership, MNA also moved to better accommodations, maintained healthy finances, and invested in
the future.
“If the organization decided to put money somewhere,
my role was to make sure the funds were there,” he said.
John’s philosophy has been that if finances are not a major
topic at the Board of Directors, everything is running smoothly
and he’s doing his job well.
“John has kept MNA financially strong over the years
and he’s leaving the organization in a strong position for the
future,” said MNA Executive Director Rose Roach.
John says he’s also witnessed MNA moving from a “professional association that had to do collective bargaining as an
afterthought” to a full union that’s proud of what we do and
being part of the union movement.
“Over the years, I have learned there is one certainty at
MNA: John Lose will keep the books and members’ dues will
be used to advance our mission,” said MNA President Linda
Hamilton. “His talent and devotion to our mission and our
members were evident in all he did. He will be sorely missed.”
John’s hopes for MNA’s future: “Keep fighting the fight.
Don’t give up. It’s worth it.”
Welcome MNA’s newest
staff members
Matthew Burris, Organizer
Cynthia Campos, Human Resources Manager
Molly Henderson, Labor Relations Specialist
Michael Koehler, Organizer
Corey Mortensen, Director of Finance
Tim Olson, Labor Relations Specialist
Laura Sayles, Governmental Affairs Specialist
Bill Spartz, Labor Relations Specialist
Beth Williams, Labor Relations Specialist
Share a smile!
Nursing isn’t always serious. There are
humorous and heartwarming moments as well.
Share those stories with your colleagues around
Minnesota – send them to Accent
and we’ll publish them in our new
‘Quips and Quotes’ section.
Email them to Barbara.Brady@mnnurses.org
Official Call to Convention
MNA’s 110th Convention and House
of Delegates is October 4-6, 2015,
in Bloomington
Watch the Member Portal for more
information coming soon.
Correction
The Winter Accent misspelled the name of Elizabeth Shogren in
the convention recap. We apologize for the error.
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
15
345 Randolph Ave., Ste. 200
St. Paul, MN 55102
OFFICIAL CALL TO CONVENTION
MNA’s 110th Convention & House of Delegates is Oct. 4–6, 2015
Call for Nominations
In November of 2015, you will be asked to vote for the leaders of your union, the Minnesota
Nurses Association (MNA). Watch for the Call for Candidates form on the Member Portal in
early April for your opportunity to submit your name to be placed on the ballot.
You are strongly encouraged to consider running for a leadership position and become involved
in making a difference in the future of the organization.
The Minnesota Nursing Accent Spring 2015
16