MNA: St. Vincent Nurses Decry Tenet’s Plan to “Bully Nurses” into Accepting Dangerous Staff Cuts
Sunday, April 19, 2020
PHOTO: File photograph of previous nurse protest at St. Vincent
Tenet’s corporate leaders in Dallas have also touted their plan to use furloughs and hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars from the federal stimulus package to “to ensure we were focused on maximizing our cash position” – not to improve care for patients. Tenet reported this month that it had $500 million “cash in hand” and access to a $1 billion line of credit, according to the Dallas Morning News.
“This is no time to be sending staff home, when our patients and our community needs us more than ever before,” said Marlena Pellegrino, RN, a medical-surgical nurse at the hospital and co-chair of the nurses local bargaining unit of the MNA. “Tenet is putting its concern for the bottom line over the safety of our patients, and we will not be silent when lives are at stake. Our staff have been proudly and courageously coming to work every day, often without the proper protective equipment, because this is our obligation and our community. It is time for Tenet to stand up and make the same commitment.”
As Tenet decides to cut staff, across the street from St. Vincent Hospital the state and the City of Worcester have transformed the DCU Center into a makeshift hospital to respond to the surge. The cuts are also happening while the state has:
-Issued an order allowing the recruitment of retired health workers to be called into active service.
-Issued an order allowing senior nursing students, who haven’t completed their education, to provide care in this emergency.
In response to Tenet’s decision, the nurses and the MNA have begun reaching out to Congressman James McGovern, Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Edward Markey, who worked tirelessly on the federal legislation to secure funding for the state’s hospitals, as well as the Worcester legislative delegation and the Worcester City Council to alert them about this callous and dangerous decision and its impact on the residents of Central Mass.
“As nurses we have an obligation to advocate for our patients, no matter what, and we intend to do everything we can to ensure we have the resources we need to provide the care you need,” said Dominique Muldoon, RN, co-chair of the nurses bargaining unit and nurse on one of the hospital’s seven COVID-19 units. “Every day, we are putting our lives, and the lives of our families on the line to provide the best care possible. We need all the help we can get, and this decision cuts our legs right out from under us. It is our patients, scared and struggling for breath, who may pay the ultimate price.”
According to the MNA, the Timeline of Tenet Plan to Force Furloughs and Staffing Cuts in Face of Pandemic Surge
From the onset of the pandemic, nurses at St. Vincent Hospital have been trying to work with Tenet management to ensure the best care for patients, including:
Securing much-needed personal protective equipment.
Establishing safe protocols for the handling of patients.
Safe redeployment of nurses to respond to the pandemic surge. This included an effort by the MNA nurses on the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) to create a plan to be trained to use the PACU as an additional source of intensive care.
Other nurses were asking to be allowed to support their colleagues on the COVID-19 floors.
A week ago Friday, April 10, nurses were outraged when Tenet threatened to implement a mandatory furlough, including the right to cancel and reduce staff on a daily basis. The MNA immediately alerted local, state and federal policymakers about the plan, who then helped to convince Tenet to put the plan on hold, with the hope of convincing Tenet to rescind this dangerous plan.
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