The union representing registered nurses at Morton Hospital in Taunton, MA, accused parent company Steward Healthcare of violating terms of its current contract agreement, and leaving a "trail of broken promises" to the community at large. Unionized nurses and others rallied Saturday, prior to the opening of negotiations for a new contract.
Advanced practice nursing is an increasingly lucrative profession. Typical pay for advanced practice nurses in the U.S. hit the six-figure mark in 2015, reaching $104,740 per year. according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Advanced practice nurses are also assuming leadership roles.
If the open-ended nurses strike at Allina Health's Twin Cities hospitals continues through Oct. 1, striking nurses will have to begin paying for the full cost of their health care coverage. No new negotiations have been announced as the Minnesota Nurses Association's strike stretched into its third week.
Allina Health and its striking nurses tried to portray one another as growing weaker Monday as the nurses' walkout reached its third week without a deal — or further talks — in sight. Allina reported that more than 500 of the 4,800 striking nurses have called to say they want to return to work at the five affected hospitals. Meanwhile, the union said it received a report that an intensive care unit closed at Allina's flagship hospital, Abbott Northwestern in Minneapolis, amid turnover in replacement nurses. Allina could not be immediately reached for comment on the report.
After completing her master's degree as a nurse practitioner, Corinna Michels, ARNP, a primary care clinician in Yakima, Wash., traveled to Cali, Colombia, on a Fulbright grant to research prenatal care before entering practice. "I knew I wanted to have a little bit more support" on her return than classmates who appeared to be floundering in their career choices, Michels told MedPage Today.
Retiree Pat Nelson was concerned nurses' salaries aren't competitive at the county's hospital system, but the CEO's salary is.
She lodged her complaint with Jackson County Supervisor Ken Taylor on Tuesday after she heard CEO Kevin Holland pitch his new budget for the county Board of Supervisors' approval. Supervisors delayed the approval until they get more details about the budget. Nelson, a nurse who retired from the Singing River Health System, was at the meeting to hear Holland and his top administrators talk about the budget with the county board.