NY Nurse: October/November 2022

nurse New York

New york state edition | october/november 2022

During Convention, NYSNA Members Affirm, “We Are One Strong Union, One United Voice.” p. 4 erie county nurses speak out for safe staffing, fair contract, p. 8

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New York Nurse october/november 2022

As Healthcare Professionals, NYSNA Nurses Will Always Defend Healthcare

By Nancy Hagans, RN, BSN, CCRN NYSNA President

Advocating for patients. Advancing the profession.SM Board of Directors President Nancy Hagans, RN, BSN, CCRN nancy.hagans@nysna.org First Vice President Judith Cutchin, , DNP, RN, MSN judith.cutchin@nysna.org Second Vice President Marion Enright, RN marion.enright@nysna.org Secretary Nella Pineda-Marcon, RN, BC nella.pineda-marcon@nysna.org Treasurer Jayne L. Cammisa, RN, BSN jayne.cammisa@nysna.org Directors at Large Matt Allen, RN, BSN matt.allen@nysna.org Reginalt Atangan, RN reginalt.atangan@nysna.org Marie Boyle, RN, BSN marie.boyle@nysna.org Seth B. Dressekie, RN, MSN, PMHNP, BC seth.dressekie@nysna.org Flandersia Jones, RN, BSN, MPH flandersia.jones@nysna.org Michelle Jones, RN, MSN, ANP-C michelle.jones@nysna.org Sonia M. Lawrence, RN, BSN sonia.lawrence@nysna.org Benny K. Mathew, RN, MS, CCRN, CEN, SCRN benny.mathew@nysna.org Ari Moma, RN, MSA ari.moma@nysna.org Jean Erica Padgett, RN jean.padgett@nysna.org Regional Directors Southeastern Vacant Southern Aretha Morgan, RN, MSN aretha.morgan@nysna.org Central

Catherine Dawson,RN,CNOR,MSN catherine.dawson@nysna.org

Lower Hudson/NJ Margaret Franks, RN Western

Steven Bailey, RN steven.bailey@nysna.org

Eastern Bill Schneider, RN, CCRN bill.schneider@nysna.org Editor Jennifer R. Farmer Executive Editor Pat Kane, RN, CNOR Executive Director Editorial offices located at: 131 W 33rd St., New York, NY 10001 Phone: 212-785-0157 Email: communications@nysna.org Website: www.nysna.org Subscription rate: $33 per year ISSN (Print) 1934-7588/ISSN (Online) 1934-7596 ©2022, All rights reserved

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urses not only provide care at the bedside, we also advocate for our patients, communities and profession. We’ve done this via legislative outreach, public actions, negotiations with our employers, and rallies. For months, we have been raising our voices, highlighting the needs of healthcare professionals, the importance of safe staffing, and the correlation between improved working conditions and patient care. Now, we’re raising the alarm about decreases in private sector funding of healthcare in favor of corporate profits.

NYC private sector hospital employers — including some of the richest hospitals in NYC — are considering reductions and restrictions to healthcare benefits for nurses, many of whom got sick on the job during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nurses were hailed as heroes at the height of the pandemic and have harrowing stories of being on the frontlines, holding hands with countless patients as they died, making masks out of old scrubs, often working without insufficient staff or PPE.

Executives Receive Millions Now, employer trustees from some of the same hospitals that paid their executives millions in bonuses from CARES Act money in 2020 are saying they need to reduce costs for healthcare benefits for nurses. They have money for their own bonuses, but not the frontline caregivers who make our healthcare system work. In Oct., employer trustees presented the union trustees of the NYSNA benefits fund (it’s a joint employer/union fund) a list of 35 reductions and restrictions to benefits and prescription coverage they’re considering.

But we have seen up close and personal: l A nurse getting COVID at work during the first Omicron wave, and almost dying from cardiac complications. l A nurse suffering from PTSD after working on a COVID unit, spending her days trying to help patients say goodbye to their loved ones over Zoom or FaceTime before they died.

NYSNA members are ready to defend their benefits. l An oncology nurse who was told

not to wear a mask in the early months of the pandemic, who contracted COVID along with her entire unit and who still suffers symptoms of Long COVID. l A nurse who contracted COVID after going into the room of a patient who was coding to try to save their life, and then brought home COVID to her entire family. l A nurse who is the mother of a young adult with a serious chronic illness who takes 24 medications a day to stay alive whose care would suffer from any changes in benefits. l A nurse who got shingles because of the unbearable stress of working during the height of COVID; one of her jobs was to put toe tags on the bodies going to the morgue. l A nurse who says the only way she could make peace with the trauma of the pandemic was to try to hold hands with as many patients as she possibly could as they died so that they didn’t die alone.

Intense Trauma It doesn’t matter what part of the state one travels; many nurses

can recount the intense trauma and stress of watching countless human beings die. Nurses are forever change — both by having put their lives at risk during a deadly pandemic, and by the indifference of hospital employers. Many are rightly angry, frustrated, and hurt that their employers are now refusing to commit to maintaining their benefits at current levels.

NYSNA has financial info from big hospital trustees like NewYorkPresbyterian and Mt. Sinai, showing that they are far from broke.

Consequently, we will not allow them to shortchange nurses who continue to suffer health-related fallout from the pandemic.

Jacking Up Fees Hospitals such as NewYorkPresbyterian (one of the fund trustees) have jacked up their fees for services, charging patients inflated prices, sometimes 300 percent or more than the Medicare rate for the same services. Relatedly, SEIU 32BJ’s benefit fund cut ties with NewYorkPresbyterian and made them out of Continued on page 11

Employer trustees from some of the same hospitals that paid their executive millions in bonuses are saying they need to reduce costs and coverage for healthcare benefits for nurses.

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october/november 2022

High Cost of Care Underscores Need for Hospital Pricing Transparency

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he United States is known for many things, including exorbitant healthcare costs.

Healthcare costs have always been high, but things appear to be getting worse. While persons who are unemployed and persons with limited financial means struggle disproportionately due to the high cost of care, people from many different backgrounds are navigating how to access and afford quality care.

According to a study from the Kaiser Family Foundation, “About half of U.S. adults say that it is very or somewhat difficult for them to afford their health care costs (47%).” There is also an age and racial impact. The same study noted that “Among those under age 65, uninsured adults are much more likely to say affording health care costs is difficult (85%) compared to those with health insurance coverage (47%). Additionally, at least six in ten Black adults (60%) and Hispanic adults (65%) report difficulty affording health care costs compared to about four in ten White adults (39%).”

Skyrocketing Costs Healthcare cost has always been an issue, but with rising inflation, it is becoming a nightmare for many Americans, including New Yorkers. The Daily News reported

that the Consumer Price Index noted that health insurance prices rose by 24.3% over the last year. It also stated that since 2000, healthcare costs have increased more than twice as fast as overall prices.

Wages, by the way, have remained stagnant as employers traditionally pass the burden of increasingly high healthcare costs onto workers.

More Transparency At a time of increasing healthcare costs, it is critical that there is more transparency in the costs of services. Price transparency can hold hospitals accountable for overcharging, up coding, and fraudulent billing. Unfortunately, far too many hospital and health systems are not transparent with the cost of care.

New York City Councilwoman Julie Menin expressed an intention to introduce legislation to require greater transparency in hospital prices for New York City hospitals. This follows a federal law, the Hospital Price Transparency Law, that went into effect in 2021 and requires hospitals to disclose the cost of common services on their websites in at least two forms.

Unfortunately, few hospitals are complying, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. NBC News summarized the findings: “The report analyzed 5,000 hospitals nationwide and found that just 300, or fewer

than 6 percent, were fully compliant with the rule, meaning they had publicly published both machinereadable files and separate price estimators for shoppable items.

Many hospitals were partly compliant, but 50 percent had neither of the two required components.”

By Pat Kane, RN NYSNA Executive Director

Fighting for More Information Healthcare professionals understand that the high cost of care means people are foregoing seeing doctors or showing up only in cases of emergency. It also means that privately funded hospital systems are cherry-picking patients and making it harder for persons of ordinary or low wealth to access services.

“Our jobs are not just about treating patients when they show up but advocating for policies that make it possible for more people to receive care,” said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, BSN, CCRN. “As NYSNA nurses enter negotiations and bargaining, we’ll be fighting for greater transparency, but also greater resources to serve all facets of the community.”

Our goal today and in the future is to help end abusive and deceptive billing practices and ensure that all people know what they’re getting in terms of the costs of care. We are also committed to continuing to advocate for universal , single-payer healthcare as a means of making care more accessible and affordable.

Healthcare cost has always been an issue, but with rising inflation, it is becoming a nightmare for many Americans.

Sources https://www.kff.org/health-costs/ issue-brief/americans-challenges-withhealth-care-costs/ https://www.nbcnews.com/health/ health-news/hospitals-list-procedureprices-under-new-law-what-youneed-n952686 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/ jama/article-abstract/2792987

NYSNA Convention 2022

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New York Nurse october/november 2022

We Are One Strong Union,

O “This is a great day for nurses in New York and across the country.

NYSNA is already a powerhouse in its own right and has done such an amazing job representing nurses in New York state. We are honored they have voted to join forces with us in building our national movement of nurses to fight for our profession, our patients, and the health of our communities.”

Jean Ross, RN, Co-President, National Nurses United

ver 700 NYSNA delegates and members convened in Monticello, NY, at the annual NYSNA Convention on October 19-20, 2022. In two days of meeting and learning together, NYSNA nurses and healthcare professionals embodied the Convention theme, demonstrating that they are One Strong Union, One United Voice.

Day one of Convention was filled with educational workshops where members learned about strategies for patient advocacy and bargaining, the latest in health and safety and preventing workplace violence, NYSNA history, PTSD and selfhealing in the nursing profession, and more.

One Strong Union NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, CCRN, BSN, opened the Convention by saying: “I am so excited to spend the next two days with you, shaping the direction of our union. And I am incredibly excited for the work ahead. 2020 may have been the year of the nurse, but we are ready to make 2022 the year of the union nurses! Nurses in New York and around the country are rising up and speaking out because the COVID-19 pandemic revealed to the world what we have known for too long — frontline healthcare workers and patients are suffering under the current

NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, CCRN, BSN, opens the 2022 NYSNA Convention.

profit-driven healthcare industry.

Healthcare needs to change, and it’s the union nurses who are ready to bring that change!”

Several guest speakers addressed NYSNA members, including Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado and Assemblymember Aileen Gunther, who recommitted their efforts to rebuild and retain the nursing nurse workforce and sent NYSNA solidarity as over 30,000 members enter contract negotiations this fall. Gunther presented an official New York State Assembly citation to NYSNA for our tireless work advocating for

NYC Health+Hospitals/ Lincoln nurses were in the house!

our patients and for safe staffing.

NYSNA members also heard from National Nurses United (NNU) Vice President Cathy Kennedy, RN, and New York State AFL-CIO SecretaryTreasurer Rev. Terrence Melvin, who reminded the crowd that solidarity across sectors is the medicine to winning workers' rights.

Our Solidarity Is Strong Day two of Convention was filled with more workshops for members and voting body for delegates, the space where elected nurses and health care professionals from every region of the state

CONVENTION 2022

NEW YORK NURSE october/november 2022

One United Voice There was an unprecedented amount of consensus on the resolutions presented and they were all discussed and quickly approved by nearunanimous votes.

NYSNA delegates celebrate the vote to affiliate with National Nurses United.

Signed, sealed and delivered! President Hagans and NNU’s Cathy Kennedy share a hug after affiliation agreement is signed.

make decisions on the direction of the union. Delegates participated in union democracy — discussing and voting on affiliation with NNU, an amendment to the NYSNA bylaws, and nine different resolutions, ranging from a legislative and policy platform to guide NYSNA, support for bargaining campaigns, public health systems, and social and healthcare equity.

There was an unprecedented amount of consensus on the resolutions presented, and they were all discussed and quickly approved by near-unanimous votes. The bylaw amendment was also approved, which will codify the right of per diem and part-time NYSNA nurses to pay a reduced dues rate. The

bylaws change will also allow reduced dues rates if NYSNA negotiates joint union representation of members with another union when hospitals merge. Full text of the amendment and resolutions are available on the NYSNA website.

Growing Union Power The resolution to affiliate with NNU was the first order of business and generated the most comments from members, with seven members speaking in favor of affiliation. The resolution passed with an overwhelming majority of delegates — 95% — voting in favor.

Celebration erupted throughout the room as members began cheering and chanting, “Sign it now!”

Members learned about NYSNA’s history and transformation as a union from trailblazing leaders. Past President Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, RN, (third from left) was later recognized for her leadership and service.

NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, CCRN, BSN, welcomed NNU’s Cathy Kennedy, RN, to the stage to sign the affiliation agreement and share a hug and a few words with NYSNA members.

Kennedy welcomed NYSNA members to NNU, which will now grow to 225,000 members. She addressed NYSNA delegates, saying: “From west coast to east coast, look out! Look out. From the Midwest, all over the United States, registered nurses are taking charge.

Taking charge of our patients, takContinued on page 12

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New York Nurse october/november 2022

Westchester Medical Center and NYSNA Reach a Five-Year Contract Agreement

O NYSNA members ratify contract that will benefit approximately 1,500 Valhalla nurses, ensure increased wages and create a new family leave bank for nurses.

n September 7, over 100 NYSNA members at Westchester Medical Center rallied in front of the hospital, calling attention to unsafe working conditions in the hospital as a result of understaffing. Nurses highlighted the need for a fair contract with fair and competitive wages, a real plan to recruit and retain nurses, and improved patient care through safe staffing.

NYSNA nurses were energized heading back to the bargaining table and excited to ratify a new contract less than two months later. Westchester Medical Center and the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) recently announced a new five-year collective bargaining agreement that will benefit more than 1,500 nurses at Westchester Medical Center, Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, and the Behavioral Health Center. The agreement increases nurse wages, preserves existing healthcare and pension benefits, and offers a new family leave bank for nurses.

19 world. When combined with our new nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, excellent work rules, and expanded leave benefits, we will be well prepared to care for patients and protect the public’s health for years to come” said NYSNA Executive Committee President David Long, RN, and NYSNA Treasurer Jayne Cammisa, RN, BSN.

New Bar

retroactively following the ratification date). Wages will increase for all NYSNA employees each year according to the following schedule: (8) percent in year one, six (6) percent year in two, five (5) percent in year three and four (4) percent in both years four and five.

The final contract also offers a variety of new incentives aimed at recruiting nurses. These include expanding salary increases for additional years of service — which will benefit the most experienced nurses and new nurses as they continue their careers at Westchester Medical Center — a new nurse practitioner salary schedule, salary increases across all individual nurse distinctions, such as education or certification level, or working non-traditional shifts, and a new family leave bank that will allow individual nurses additional leave options to accommodate life events such as the birth of a child or caring for a sick family member.

Congratulations to the NYSNA Westchester Medical Center members for their persistent advocacy for nurses and patients that resulted in a great contract.

Essential Role of Nurses

“A new bar has been set for nurse raises and work rules with this new contract. I couldn’t be prouder of our Westchester Medical Center public health defenders. They put their lives on the line to defend public health during COVID-19, and this contract respects the heroic efforts of WMC nurses and allows our nurses and communities to heal and turn a new leaf on public health in New York,” said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, CCRN, BSN. The ratified agreement delivers substantial annual wage increases.

Wages will increase September 1st of every year from 2022-2026 (this year’s increase will be received

“This agreement reflects the essential role of our nurses and their contributions to helping Westchester Medical Center deliver the best patient care, and it underscores our commitment to partnering with the union to prioritize the range of benefits that will help us continue to attract and retain the best nurses — particularly at a time when the healthcare industry is facing a labor shortage nationally,” said Phyllis Yezzo, Executive Vice President and Chief Nurse Executive for the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth).

“This new contract will raise nurses’ pay by over 27% in the next five years. This new pay structure and contract will make Westchester Medical Center a premier destination for union nurses in the metro New York City area — a significant boost for recruiting nurses and for retaining nurses facing stress and fatigue from delivering care in a COVID-

On September 7, NYSNA Members spoke out for a fair contract.

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Advocacy

october/november 2022

NYSNA Nurses and Allies Speak Out to Rebuild and Strengthen NYC’s Public Healthcare System

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ore than a dozen elected officials joined New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) nurses in solidarity on the City Hall steps to launch a campaign for a fair contract for the nearly 9,000 NYC Health+Hospitals/Mayorals nurses and fair funding for the nation’s largest public health system. NYC’s public sector nurses have been essential in saving lives throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but now the NYC Health+Hospitals system is facing crisis-level understaffing and underfunding.

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, Sen. Gustavo Rivera, Sen. Brian Kavanaugh, and more than a dozen City Council members spoke out in support of city nurses and for fair funding for the city’s public health system.

Public Hospitals Need Full and Fair Funding New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) First Vice President Judith Cutchin, DNP, RN, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the deep inequalities in NYC’s public and private sector hospital systems, which led to a disproportionate number of people of color and low-income patients dying of COVID-19.

We need full and fair funding for our public healthcare system as a matter of health equity and racial justice and to make the entire city more prepared to deal with the ongoing pandemic and future healthcare emergencies.”

NYSNA Director at Large, Sonia Lawrence, RN, of Health+Hospitals/ Lincoln, said: “At H+H we care for all New Yorkers — but we need to do it safely — with quality. This is hard because we’re always doing more with less. It is widely accepted that safe staffing saves lives, yet H+H nurses are forced daily to undertake patient ratios that are clinically unsafe and are in direct violation of our staffing laws. So many of our experienced nurses are tired and giv-

City Hall, October 6, 2022

ing up. H+H needs to do more to retain experienced nurses rooted in the community. All we want is to be fairly compensated and fairly treated for the important work we do. It’s time to respect public sector nurses and our patients!”

Large Disparity The pay difference between nurses in public sector and private sector hospitals is large — more than $14,000/year. Public sector nurses are calling for pay equity in order to retain nurses.

NYC Health+Hospitals nurses care for 1.4 million New Yorkers each year, regardless of ability to pay, including 475,000 uninsured patients. As private sector hospitals downsize and eliminate less profitable services like mental healthcare, labor and delivery, and emergency/trauma care, New York’s public hospitals are there to provide these essential services.

“We rightly celebrated New York City’s nurses as essential workers during the pandemic, and so now it’s time to pay them higher wages,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams. “Public sector nurses deliver top-quality care for our community every day, and they deserve pay that reflects that

work. I hope to see our hospitals award our nurses a fair contract.”

Protect Frontline Nurses “Our frontline nurses protect the health of our communities by providing quality care for all New Yorkers,” said City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams. “They deserve a fair contract, safe staffing levels, and appropriate resources to continue serving our communities with essential care. I stand in solidarity with the New York State Nurses Association in their call for respect, dignity, and support through a fair contract.”

New York City Council Member Mercedes Narcisse, Chair of the Hospitals Committee said: “As a former public sector registered nurse, I can confidently say that nurses are truly the backbone of our healthcare system. These healthcare heroes proved time and time again their immense worth to our city during the pandemic, and all certainly deserve our respect and most importantly fair wages and equity with their counterparts in the private sector. I am proud to stand in support with my sisters and brothers in NYSNA to call for a fair contract.”

Continued on page 8

NYSNA launches campaign for full and fair funding of the nation’s largest public health system.

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Member Speak Out

New York Nurse october/november 2022

NYSNA Nurses Speak Out for Safe Staffing and a Fair Contract at Erie County Medical Center

D Nurses say fair contract is needed to recruit and retain enough nurses for safe patient care.

ozens of NYSNA members at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC) held a speak-out outside the hospital on Sept. 22 to call attention to unsafe staffing and working conditions at the facility. The speak-out and bargaining with the more than 1,300 nurses at ECMC comes on the heels of contract negotiations at Kaleida Health, the largest healthcare system in Western New York, where fellow union healthcare professionals recently voted to authorize a strike. Both ECMC and Kaleida healthcare professionals are facing similar workplace issues: understaffing and a failure to recruit and retain enough nurses for safe patient care.

More Action Needed “Nurses across the region and the country learned a big lesson from the pandemic — hospitals were unprepared,” said Steven Bailey, RN, NYSNA board member and Terrace View Long Term Care nurse. “Hospital administration and the for-profit healthcare system left frontline workers feeling abandoned while they were trying to provide safe patient care. It’s

NYSNA nurses at ECMC are ready to fight for a fair contract.

up to us to help ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

Progress Made, More Needed Earlier this year, ECMC administrators and NYSNA members reached an agreement through impact bargaining that made contractual improvements with the goal of improving staffing levels for safe patient care. While NYSNA members recognize the gains that were made, they don’t believe that ECMC has done enough to recruit and retain frontline workers for the hospital.

“Several months ago, we were successful in making strides to reverse the trend of nurse burnout and retention, but it wasn’t enough,” said NYSNA Bargaining

NYC’s Public Health System Continued from page 7

Garnering External Support “We support NYSNA and their demand for a fair contract. Our public sector nurses stepped up when we needed them most; they were revered and deemed heroes during the toughest parts of the pandemic. We would not have moved forward without their dedication and commitment to ensuring that our city was well taken care of,” said Council Member Carmen De La Rosa, Chair of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor. “We cannot pay our nurses back with a lack of fair contracts, pay equity, and competitive benefit packages. We cannot risk the strength and safety of our healthcare system by failing to retain our healthcare workforce.”

“New York City is home to one of the largest hospital systems in the country, yet its employees continue to face pay disparities in the

workplace. Nurses are the backbone of our healthcare system, yet they struggle to make ends meet and find themselves working overtime or taking on a second job. By paying current and new staff members a livable wage, we will decrease the vacancies filled by third-party agencies and traveling nurses, reviving our hospitals and patient experience.

To truly achieve pay equity for our municipal workers in the medical field, prioritize our recruitment and retention. There is no reason for two nurses with similar, if not the same credentials, to have different experiences in the workplace,” said Chair of the Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection, Council Member Marjorie Velázquez.

Legislative Support New York City Council Member Jennifer Gutierrez said: “It is a moral imperative that we ensure that nurses can take care of them-

Committee member Lona DeNisco, RN. “Patient care is still suffering due to inadequate nurse-to-patient ratios. For the sake of our community, now is the time for ECMC to make real changes to improve the care in our community.”

Nurses at ECMC join the more than 30,000 NYSNA members who will be bargaining contracts for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the largest hospital and the only public hospital in the Buffalo area, ECMC is the backbone of healthcare for the region. NYSNA nurses at ECMC are bargaining for improved patient care for the community, including safe staffing and better working conditions to recruit and retain nurses. selves as well as their patients and be valued for the essential work that they perform every day — and respected for the crucial role they played during our worst days of the pandemic. We also cannot ignore that this is a profession that is predominately women, almost 90%, and negotiating a fair and equitable contract would be an important signal that our city cares about our female workforce.”

“Our NYSNA Health+Hospital nurses saved countless New Yorkers during the pandemic, sacrificing their own health for the sake of their patients. They deserve the same pay as private sector nurses for their tireless work,” said Council Member Julie Won. “As contracts chair for the City Council, I will work to ensure that our nurses have a fair contract that meets all of their demands, including pay equity, safe staffing, and the resources to continue providing high-quality health care for all of our neighbors.”

climate crisis

NEW YORK NURSE october/november 2022

NYSNA Members Celebrate the Conference of Parties Climate Summit in Egypt

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mid rising concerns around the climate crisis and devastating weather emergencies, NYSNA members celebrated the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP) 27 on November 6-18 in Egypt. Members have experienced firsthand the danger of the climate crisis. New Yorkers have weathered not only climate emergencies but a by-product of the climate crisis, air pollution, which has caused respiratory issues, cancer, and dirty air and water. But New Yorkers also remember debilitating storms — such as Superstorm Sandy on October 22–November 2, 2012 — that displaced loved ones and inspired more proactive action on the climate emergency.

Carrying Others’ Pain During COP 27, advocates center the experiences of persons impacted by wildfires, flash flooding and heat waves. Inaction on the climate crisis exacerbates those natural disasters, and NYSNA members know that well.

The COP is an annual event that heads of states, presidents, climate

activists, healthcare workers and others from 195 countries attend.

The goal is to inspire countries to do their part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Leading up to COP 27, NYSNA Director at Large, Nella Pineda-Marcon, RN, BSN, traveled to South Korea to present on public healthcare's role in responding to the climate crisis at a global panel hosted by the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union. She connected with trade unions from around the world and shared strategies on how to build a public-centered just transition to clean energy and good jobs.

Vested Interest “Global warming has overarching effects on our communities, resulting in such a broad array of illnesses that it simply cannot be ignored: respiratory problems from asthma to emphysema, malnutrition, dehydrating illnesses, injuries, vector-related infections, unclean water micro-organism invasion, cardio-vascular complications, mental illness and post-traumatic stress disorder, and even forced

migration due to extreme weather often resulting in violence and even war,” said Judy Sheridan-González, RN, immediate past president of NYSNA and longtime environmental activist. “Healthcare professionals therefore have a unique interest in attending and advocating for immediate action on the climate emergency.”

During the United Nations’ COP, each country offers its big ideas or nationally determined contributions to address the climate crisis.

It is fitting that healthcare workers participate in the summit because they are on the frontlines responding to the climate crisis in terms of treating people suffering because of it or helping people in the wake of climate emergencies.

Global warming has overarching effects on our communities, resulting in such a broad array of illnesses that it simply cannot be ignored.

(above) NYSNA nurses go door to door responding to Superstorm Sandy. (left) Some of the devastation nurses saw when responding to Superstorm Sandy.

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Electoral Update

New York Nurse

october/november 2022

Labor and Healthcare Champions Win Elections

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By Michelle Crentsil NYSNA Political Director

NYSNA members and staff had thousands of conversations with other union members and their families about the importance of voting in the general election and supporting pro-worker candidates up and down the ballot.

ince the primary season, NYSNA members have been mobilizing to elect leaders who will fight for nurses, healthcare professionals, our patients and work­ing families in 2022 and beyond. Team NYSNA turned out-over 100 members knocked on nearly 10,000 doors, phone banked 32,000 labor households and ral­lied for healthcare champions.

NYSNA members and staff had thousands of conversations with other union members and their families about the importance of voting in the general election and supporting pro-worker candidates up and down the ballot. Members also partnered with fellow labor unions to elect pro-labor candi­ dates, and the weekend before Election Day, we rallied with the New York State AFL-CIO in Brooklyn to get out the vote.

Strong Showing NYSNA-endorsed candidates had a strong showing even with tough losses throughout the country.

The Working Families Party ran a robust field operation that secured their ballot line and pro­pelled the statewide ticket and many others to victories.

Kathy Hochul made history by becoming the first woman elected governor of New York. All state­ wide, NYSNA-endorsed candi­ dates also celebrated re-election: Antonio Delgado as Lieutenant Governor, Chuck Schumer as U.S. Senator, Letitia James as Attorney General and Thomas DiNapoli as Comptroller.

Nationally, in the U.S. Senate, Democrats and a coalition of unions f1ipped a Senate seat in Pennsylvania, with John Fetterman’s victory in his high-profile race. Coupled with victories in Arizona and Nevada, New York’s own Senator Chuck Schumer will maintain his powerful position as the Senate Majority Leader.

In the U.S. House, Democrats lost their majority by a slim margin.

Many of our down-ballot champions also won their races for the State Legislature, Congress, or

(L-R) Michelle Jones, RN, Governor Kathy Hochul, and Aretha Morgan, RN, at the New York Carnival, September 5, 2022

are leading as the final ballots are counted.

Congress In the Hudson Valley, Pat Ryan won a full term to U.S. Congress in a highly contested race to represent NY’s 18th Congressional District.

State Senate lwen Chu is leading in Brooklyn’s Senate District 17.

Jessica Scarcella-Spanton won in SD 23 covering parts of Staten Island and Brooklyn.

Pete Harckham will be re-elected to the State Senate representing SD 40 in Westchester.

And in the Hudson Valley, Albany, and Buffalo, Michelle Hinchey, Neil Breslin, and Sean Ryan were re-elected respectively.

Upstate, Lea Webb won her election to SD 52 and became the first black woman to represent the region.

State Assembly Dana Levenberg won election to the Assembly, working closely with a broad labor coalition to represent AD 95 in Westchester.

In Sullivan and Orange Counties, Aileen Gunther; a nurse who has stood with NYSNA on so many

issues, also won re-election to rep­ resent AD 100.

Sarahana Shrestha won her election to the Assembly after a tough primary and building a progressive and pro-labor coalition to represent AD 103 in Ulster County.

In the North Country, our ally Billy Jones won his re-election to represent AD 115 with support from NYSNA and labor partners.

Other Races Lastly, Jen Metzger, a former State Senator and NYSNA Champion, won her race for Ulster County Executive, where she will keep fighting for safe staffing and NYSNA priorities.

There are still more votes to be counted — please watch NYSNA’s social media and member communications for further updates.

Building Political Power We saw incredible victories for healthcare champions across the state and throughout the country.

Ballot measures in New York and New York City won by a landslide.

Voters overwhelmingly said yes on four ballot proposals to protect our environment, guide our city government toward justice and equalContinued on page 11

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october/november 2022

New York Political Power at NYSNA Convention

Senator Chuck Schumer

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

NYSNA Nurses Defend Healthcare Continued from page 2

network as a result of the hospital’s outrageously inflated costs.

This is a problem of the hospitals’ own making: they created conditions where nurses would inevitably get sick, then overcharged them for care. Now they want nurses to cover the shortfall instead of increasing their contributions to the benefit fund for the heroes who continually put

Elections Continued from page 10

ity, and enact the creation of a true cost-of-living measure to inform policy decisions.

NYSNA helped many candidates win their races. We currently estimate 130 NYSNA-endorsed candidates won on election day.

While there were strong showings for pro-labor candidates throughout the state and the country, we have a lot of work and planning to do for local elections next year and for the 2024 presidential election and the down-ballot battleground races for the U.S. House, State Senate, and State Assembly. Let’s keep fighting together for nurses’ power, healthcare for all, and to protect our state and country from the anti-worker forces that are a threat to so many of our values. To get more involved in building nurses’ political power, join the Political Action Team.

their lives on the line in service of patients and communities. We will not allow this sleight of hand by greedy employers to go unnoticed or unchallenged.

This Will Not Go Unchallenged For years, the hospitals enjoyed profits from the benefit funds.

Now they are refusing to contribute to it. Employers need to hear that NYSNA members are ready

NY Attorney General Letitia James

to defend their healthcare benefits.

Send a message to boss trustees today bit.ly/defendNYSNAhc! NYSNA will soon launch a satirical ad campaign highlighting New York-Presbyterian’s outrageous CEO pay and its efforts to force healthcare professionals to shoulder the costs of rising costs and corporate bonuses. Stay tuned for updates on our other work to hold New York-Presbyterian, and health systems like them, accountable.

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New York Nurse

october/november 2022

One Strong Union, with One United Voice Continued from page 5

ing care of our practice, our communities, every day. We are happy that you are in our big umbrella.

Welcome to NNU!"

We Are the Union

There could be another nurse who’s specifically assigned to come and do relief and be that other nurse in the room, so that a nurse is not overwhelmed with 16 patients when someone goes on break.

This was the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic that NYSNA members came together at an in-person Convention. Long-time NYSNA leaders and first-time NYSNA delegates alike were excited to connect, share their experiences, and strategize and learn from one another.

First-time delegate Charles Duru, RN, representing NYC Health+Hospitals/ Morrisania, said: “I am so impressed. It’s an honor to be here as a delegate and to participate in this process of democracy — people voicing their views, bringing their ideas together, having a common goal, an agenda — helping humanity and securing our future.”

Long-time nurse leader and Convention delegate from Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, Dalia Branford, RN, said: “There was a lot of energy in the room, and it was felt. We were sitting in one of the classes and the issue of relief nursing came up. There could be another nurse who’s specifically assigned to come and do relief and be that other nurse in the room so that a nurse is not overwhelmed with 16 patients when someone goes on break. That was powerful to me to bring back to my organization. To say this is pos-

BronxCare nurses, including many first-time delegates, were excited to be at Convention.

sible — other places have this and it’s something we can do here.”

Make a Difference BronxCare nurses were well-represented at Convention. Two first-time delegates, Vasteen Johnson, RN, and Phyllis Agyeman-Amankwaa, RN, both reflected at the end of two days at Convention that they regretted not being more involved in NYSNA earlier in their nursing careers. Phyllis Agyeman-Amankwaa, RN, said:

“It’s just amazing seeing all these nurses come together for a common cause. We want better staffing, and we want to see this profession take its place up there. It’s funny how you sometimes take a step back because you think you cannot make a difference, but then you come to Convention and see all these nurses who have sacrificed and put their time and dedication into making it work.

Every little bit helps, and I think that everybody can make a difference.”

“Nurses are stronger when we work collectively.

Our solidarity is what makes it possible to challenge injustice and inequity in our workplaces and in the health of our society. We could not be more proud to now be fighting this fight alongside New York nurses.”

Bonnie Castillo, RN, Executive Director, NNU

Members discuss and learn at one of the many continuing education courses at Convention.

native americans

NEW YORK NURSE

october/november 2022

We Must Do Better About Learning with and from Indigenous Communities

By Jennifer R. Farmer

W

hen many people think of Native American Heritage Month, they tend to think about the history of First Nations peoples without consideration of presentday challenges. For far too many, learning about Indigenous communities begins and ends at the violent displacement of Native people. The discourse is reserved for November, and even then, it is punctuated by superficiality or surface-level recognition. While there will forever be cause for mourning the atrocities visited upon First Nations people, humanity requires that we be engaged with present day struggles rather than looking solely at the past. The past is informative, but it cannot be exhaustive in terms of what we learn about Indigenous communities.

Our research on Indigenous communities must extend to the present so that we are clear on current, not just historical threats. History is informative, yes; but Indigenous communities needs co-conspirators and allies who aware of what is happening today and committed to act in ways that are beneficial to the community. For instance, there are policies on the table today that harm and marginalize tribal communities.

In one example, on November 9, the United States Supreme Court heard a challenge to the Indian Child Welfare Act, a 1978 federal law that establishes standards for state court proceedings involving Native children.

Preserve Families and Cultural According to an industry publication for the United States Supreme Court, SCOTUSBlog, “In Haaland v. Brackeen (consolidated for one hour of oral argument with Cherokee Nation v. Brackeen, Texas v. Haaland, and Brackeen v. Haaland), the justices agreed to review a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit that invalidated portions of the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law enacted in 1978 that (among other things) establishes minimum standards for the removal of Native

13

Chiricahua Apaches Four Months After Arriving at Carlisle Boarding School

American children from their families and establishes a preference that Native children who are removed from their families be placed with extended family members or in Native foster homes.” Should the plaintiffs prevail, the bar for removing Native children from their families and communities will be lower.

Stolen From Their Families Prior to passage of the Indian Child Welfare Act, Indigenous children were routinely stolen from their families and placed in foster care, adopted by families outside of the community, or sent to Indian Boarding Schools. Breaking up families is traumatic for any community, and it proved to be a weapon of destruction for First Nations people.

In a discussion with Sarah Augustine, author of “The Land is Not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery,” I learned that families are a protective barrier for Native young people. One of the ways that genocide was visited upon First Nations people was by removing children from their homes — a practice that has also disproportionately impacted Black children — via foster care and adoptions to persons outside of the community. The legacy of Indian Boarding Schools and the trauma of genocide and cultural erasure against Native communities

has led to higher rates of substance abuse, suicide, mental health disorders, intergenerational trauma and attachment disorders.

Indian Boarding Schools “An investigation by the U.S. Interior Department identified 408 federal schools in 37 states or territories that operated from 1819 to 1969. The report revealed the existence of marked or unmarked burial sites at more than 50 of the schools.”

In 2022 and beyond, all of us must do better about learning with and from Indigenous communities; we must be intentional about learning about their experience in a nonexploitative way. Native American Heritage Month is an opportunity to awaken learning but also renew our commitment to remembering and fighting alongside Native people. This is a moment to inspire greater awareness about, and greater commitment to, Indigenous or First Nations communities.

Learning in Action As healthcare professionals, NYSNA members joined PNHPNY Metro for a virtual discussion around Indigenous Peoples’ Health on November 15. Speakers offered context and historical perspective to better understand the current health disparities and healthcare needs Continued on page 15

We must be intentional about celebrating without appropriating, including without tokenizing, and acting without expecting a reward.

14

Around our union

New York Nurse

october/november 2022

Week of Action: Nurses Speak Out for Fair Contracts and Safe Staffing

P

rivate-sector nurses spoke out for fair contracts and safe staffing at several facilities during the October 24 Week of Action. From Long Island to Brooklyn to the Bronx, NYSNA members sounded the alarm on the staffing crisis that has left caregivers burned out and at their breaking point. As more than 30,000 NYSNA nurses are currently bargaining, members made waves and made news by demanding healthcare executives listen to nurses and take action to protect them and their patients.

Nurses from NewYorkPresbyterian, Mount Sinai, Brooklyn Hospital Center, and

Pat Mitchell, RN, speaks out at Brooklyn Hospital Center, October 27, 2022.

NYSNA Director Margaret Franks, RN, BSN, brings NewYork-Presbyterian nurses solidarity from the Hudson Valley, October 24, 2022.

Montefiore held speak outs against the bare-bones staffing conditions they are forced to work under, depriving patients of much-needed care. As Mount Sinai nurse Sandra Reid, RN, said, “It is past time we had safe staffing and respect. I love my patients and my colleagues, but I don’t love the super short staffing on my unit. Our staffing is so short that when one person goes on vacation, we’re down to only 2 nurses on the floor for 20 or 21 patients.

Instead of hiring more nurses or staffing safely on every shift, managers make nurses feel ostracized for calling out sick or trying to take a vacation. Nurses are burnt out and tired of being disrespected.”

It’s Time to Pass Workplace Violence Protection

O

n October 22, 2022, Jacqueline Pokuaa and Katie Flowers, who went by Annette, were killed at Methodist Dallas Medical Center.

The women were healthcare workers at the Dallas medical facility.

NYSNA mourns the death of these fellow healthcare professionals and is reminded of the increasing violence nurses face while on the job.

Earlier this year, National Nurses United and the AFL-CIO joined national organizations in a letter demanding the U.S. Senate pass the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act. At a time of increasing violence against healthcare and social service workers, this bill would protect them and require a federal violence prevention standard.

NYSNA joined federal lobby efforts during Nurses’ Week to pass workplace violence prevention legislation and applauds our union partners for their advocacy to protect working people everywhere.

No family should receive a call that their loved one will never return home from work.

NEW YORK NURSE

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october/november 2022

Nurses from Northwell Health Plainview, Syosset and South Shore Hospitals March on Corporate Headquarters to Demand Fair Contracts

M

embers of the New York State Nurses Association who work at three Northwell Health facilities on Long Island recently escalated their fight for a fair contract. In late August, nurses at Syosset and Plainview Hospitals held informational pickets to sound the alarm about the safe staffing crisis impacting patient care at both hospitals. The action came after nearly a year of bargaining and holding informational pickets in August.

Taking Direct Action

Long Island Northwell Nurses Deliver Petitions to Executives on October 27.

Healthcare professionals at the three Northwell hospitals who are in bargaining — Plainview, Syosset and South Shore — joined together to demand fair contracts. In Oct., they delivered giant petition boards signed by hundreds of members to Northwell executives. The nurses marched on Northwell executive offices at 2000 Marcus Avenue in

New Hyde Park, NY, demanding Northwell negotiate in good faith and bargain a fair contract that delivers safe staffing, fair wages and benefits, and strong health and safety protections. But Northwell executives refused to accept the petitions.

“We felt very disrespected that they refused to meet with

us or even accept the petitions,” said Chrysse Blau, RN, local president at Northwell/South Shore University Hospital, said.

“Northwell executives still have a giant healthcare hero sign on their building, but they are not treating us, the frontline nurses, like heroes.”

Escalating Our Call for Safe Staffing Now in New York’s ICUs

N

YSNA members are continuing to pressure the New York State Department of Health (DOH) to act on safe staffing. The DOH was supposed to enact an intensive care unit (ICU) safe staffing regulation back in January as part of our

safe staffing legislative victory in 2021, but the department is dragging its feet. So many members called the DOH to let it know safe staffing cannot wait that the department disconnected the phone lines! Take action and send a letter campaign to key DOH

leaders, calling on them to take action now and enact safe staffing ratios in every ICU in New York.

Keep up the pressure, and make your voice heard — send your message to the DOH today by visiting https://bit.ly/staffingicu!

Learning with and from Indigenous Communities Continued from page 13

of Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Members heard firsthand perspectives on patient care for Indigenous people as well as examples of innovation in care models.

We Can Act One of the ways we can demonstrate solidarity with the struggles of First Nations people is by opposing policies and practices that would undermine the Indian Child Welfare Act. You can sign a petition in support of the preservation of ICWA here: www.thepetitionsite. com/155/970/189/stop-stealingnative-kids.-protect-icwa./. You can also support Indigenous organiza-

tions that are focusing on missing, murdered indigenous women.

Murder is the third leading cause of death for Indigenous women.

According to Native Women’s Wilderness, “As of 2016, the National Crime Information Center has reported 5,712 cases of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls.” The women are often murdered by non-Native people on Native land.

Finally, every place the souls of our feet touch here in the U.S. once belonged to Indigenous people. We should learn about the significance of where we live, work, and consider donating to the original tribal community on which we presently

live and work. You can learn more here: https://native-land.ca/.

It’s not enough to celebrate. We must act, now and forever. We must include Indigenous people and perspectives in all aspects of our social and political systems. We must be intentional about celebrating without appropriating, including without tokenizing, and acting without expecting a reward.

SOURCES: www.redding.com/in-depth/ news/2022/10/12/how-indianboarding-schools-left-emotional-scarsremain-history/10053835002/ www.nativewomenswilderness.org/ mmiw.

Hundreds of Northwell Health nurses signed the petition for a fair contract.

NEW YORK NURSE October/november 2022

131 West 33rd Street, 4th Floor New York, NY 10001

INSIDE

We Must Do Better About Learning with and from Indigenous Communities, p. 13

Convention 2022, pp. 4-5

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