Nurses demand increase in staffing at Independence, MO, medical center

Nurses at Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence, MO, have presented a petition to hospital administrators saying that the hospital needs to beef up staffing to ensure patient safety. Nurses United for Improved Patient Care, a union that represents Centerpoint nurses, noted that Centerpoint scored worst among area hospitals in key patient ratings reported recently by the federal government. Representatives for HCA Midwest Health System, which runs Centerpoint, acknowledged that Centerpoint needs more nurses than the 300-plus who are currently on staff but added the hospital is successfully recruiting new nurses.