A nurse’s strike at Mercy Medical Center Mt. Shasta scheduled for last Friday was called off after Catholic Healthcare West entered into an agreement that will assure proper safety precautions in regard to the H1N1 virus.
A press release from the California Nurses Association said the centerpiece of the agreement is the creation of a new system-wide emergency task force, comprised of CNA nurses and hospital representatives.
The task force will monitor preparedness and set uniform standards on full implementation of federal, state and local guidelines, availability of safety protective equipment, communication and training policies for all personnel, the release states.
Though CNA chief nurse representative Hertha Grass said the nursing staff at Mercy Mt. Shasta is generally “pretty happy,” and did not share the deep-rooted concerns that CNA nurses at other CHW hospitals did, they were planning to join in the strike to “support RNs at our sister hospitals.”
In addition to the H1N1 standards, CNA and CHW also settled other outstanding issues on assuring adherence to safe staffing standards, reducing the assignment of RNs to areas outside their clinical expertise or orientation, and proposals to reduce nurses' healthcare coverage, the release states.