Hawaii Nurses Strike Back

With the addition of the Queen's Medical Center, there are now three hospitals facing nursing strikes: Kuakini, St. Francis, and Queen's - by far the largest. And by the reception the picketers are getting with their "Honk If You Love Nurses" sign, most seem on their side in the walkout.

Of course, the strike means a reduction in services (including life-sustaining ones like dialysis - and there's a lawsuit in the works now to force "vital" specialized nurses back to work), and even the turning away of patients. It's frightening.

I, too, fall in the "nurses are the backbone of health care" camp. When my son was in the hospital, his care was 99 percent nurses (and great nurses at that), one percent doctors. Not that the doctors weren't knowledgable, but they just weren't available. Nurses would bother them to sign off on prescriptions or specific changes to medication or care, but for the most part, the doctor's primary contribution was a daily report - based on maybe 5 minutes of actually visiting the patient and all the records and readings kept by the nurses. And that report strangely always made it sound like they did all the work.

Nurses need to be paid better, and they need to not be stretched so thin. A recent study earlier this year proved what many suspected - that the more patients a nurse has to handle, the higher probability a mistake will be made or the patient will needlessly suffer.

Still, I think healthcare is a more vital area than, say, West Coast dock shipping, as far as areas we can't let collapse because of labor disputes. My son is home now, but I know there are babies in intensive care right now that could probably use more attention.

(I will say that the "traveling" nurses, at least the ones KMCWC brings in, are awesome.)

Comments

I think the Nurses deserve better treatment, shorter shifts and higher salaries. They are just as important as the Doctors who make a lot more money. Many of the nurses work 12 and 16 hour shifts and this STRIKE is their last resort in getting a new and fairer contract.

In my opinion our priorities are not, well prioritized.

We pay millions of dollars to Professional Athletes and Rock Stars while Teachers and Nurses "people who care for our childrens future" are left making menial salaries and often go into their own pockets to do their jobs. We need to show our support for the real Heroes!

I'm sorry but I'm afraid I cannot agree with those supporting the strike, for two broad policy reasons.

First is that just because they care for us when we are sick or injured doesn't make it right for these workers to ask for more money (and let's not kid ourselves, it is QUITE a bit more) and less work (i.e., less OT, less patients). I honestly appreciate the role these healthcare workers play in our community, but that role doesn't justify a completely illogical economic labor argument. How many of you actually think you could walk into your superior's office and make the same kind of demand (more $, less work)? And I'm sorry, but when you become a healthcare worker, you know that you're in for long hours. What's next? Police threatining to strike because they want safer patrol beats?

The second reason is that almost everyone misunderstands the fundamentals of healthcare economics and, therefore, misunderstand the broad economic consequences. As someone who works in the field, I can tell you that healthcare consumers (the general public) expect better care but want to pay less for it. We all want the best technology available to save our lives, but we want it on the cheap. That sentiment is borne out in industry survey after survey of consumers. The public complains about high healthcare insurance costs, claiming insurers are making too much money and that their profits could go toward paying for true healthcare delivery costs. If you examine the annual reports for both Kaiser & HMSA, you'll see that they are actually losing money hand over fist because the cost of care continues to skyrocket. A single patient day in the hospital costs over $500 just for the room; ancillary charges run over $1400. And that's if you're getting better. That's why the government (Medicare/Medicaid) cut back drastically on what they pay hospitals and doctors - it simply costs too much.

So if costs are escalating so rapidly that both government and insurers are losing millions, what makes anyone think that we have the resources to pay providers (of which nurses are a subset) even more money?

Who will end up paying for it? The domino effect goes something like this. If hospital operating expenses go up (and hospital dollars make up the bulk of healthcare costs in Hawaii), they will need to raise their rates. That means insurers will do one of two things: they will either raise rates themselves or shift costs to the member. If they shift it directly, that means you and I pay out of our pocket for these raises. If insurers raise coverage rates, that means your employer has to absorb it, in which case they may have to cutback expansion, layoff staff, or force you to pay more for your health plan. Either way, it's a direct cost-shift to consumers.

You cannot control costs simply by forcing government or the insurers to pay more money to hospitals and doctors. Healthcare economics are like a tube of toothpaste; if you squeeze it on one end, it will have to come out the other. There is definitely a middle ground to be reached in this contract dispute, but the broader policy implications for the economy are severe. It's true we need nurses to care for us. Twelve months down the road, however, when the ripple of these raises hits the thousands of small employers who must finance healthcare in our state, I wonder who'll care for them?

Health care costs are spiraling out of control and frankly I don't know what the answer is to curtail these costs. I agree that giving the nurses the huge pay increase they demand will only drive the costs of health care up for all of us. Down the road we will have to pay more for health care insurance and I generally don't want to do that.

Another thing to think about is that Hawaii is the only state in the union that mandates all employers pay for all or part of their full-time employee insurance benefits. This mandate has generally been regarded as being bad for business and contributes to Hawaii's reputation as a bad place to do business.

Perhaps health care insurance providers should offer us a-la-carte plans where we pay for insurance only on the services that we think we will need and use. For example, being a single male, there is no reason why my health care insurance premiums should be used to buy maternity care.

I also believe the nurses deserve what they are asking for. How ironic is it that the people providing health care for us don't have health care when they retire. I belive the nurses (of all people) deserve this benefit. When they retire are we as a society going to throw them to the wolves after they gave 20, 30 or more years of their lives careing for others? It is true that health costs have increased drastically, but then what hasn't? Is it the nurses fault that these costs are skyrocketing? I doubt it, I don't know of any nurses driving $75,000 cars or living on the side of a mountain with a million dollar view. Why should a nurse be required to take a day of vacation to call in sick? Do you do that...I doubt it. Hospitals say they are sick of people abusing the sick leave policy. I say what policy? Use your vacation to call in sick? The people abusing the sick leave are not the nurses, it is the administrative staff of the hospitals that do get sick leave.

As far as hospitals losing money. Don't think so. If they lose money, they shouldn't be in business. I'd sure love to see their income tax filings for the past decade to see how much money they lose. I know one of the hospitals' form 990 is posted on the internet because it is public information as all non-profit organizations are. Just look, you will find it.

Nurses asking for a "huge" pay increase is simply not true. The nurses at Queens hospital were offered a 28% increase over 3 years and declined it. They didn't decline because the wage increase was too small, they declined because of other issues. Assume they were complaining of wages, I would have to agree with the nurses on this issue. Hospitals ARE makine HUGE profits as evidenced by their expansions and ability to hire outside nurses for outrageous prices during this strike. Even the hospital that initially didn't consider hiring outside nurses because of what they called "lack of funds" are now looking into that direction. Did they just find some money?

Equally qualified nurses on the mainland make substantially higher wages than here in Hawaii for the same services. Hawaii is way behind with treating their employees equally. Not just in the health field, but in all fields.

It is becoming quite evident what it would be like without nurses. They are the backbones of our hospitals. Without them our quality of treatment will continue to erode until there is no quality. Over the years nurses have been being replaced by underqualified personell and it is beging to to be obvious. The requirements of having nurses hasn't changed much, therefore the nurses that are left have been required to do more and more as the nursing staff has been eliminated. It is at the point where it is impossible for nurses to provide quality care for patients and complete their other collateral responsibilities in a timely, professional manner.

I SUPPORT THE NURSES 100%

I support nurses in general and agree that without a properly trained force of nurses, care will suffer. I think what I was trying to point out is that their demands are unrealistic given the broad economic policy problems created by skyrocketing health care costs and that, by striking, they are in effect holding future decision makers hostage to their current demands.

I don't want to turn this into an economics forum, but if you asked your employer for a 28% raise over three years, do you honestly believe you'd get it? The AVERAGE wage increase in this state hovers at 3% per year. Do nurses on the mainland make more than our nurses? Yes, they sure do. But health care costs on the mainland are over 35% higher than they are here (both in direct cost of care and cost of insurance). Is that what we're striving for - comparable wages AND costs?

Do nurses deserve health care coverage in retirement? Sure, but no more than everyone else who works. Saying that they deserve higher pay now AND less work now AND a richer retirement healthcare package later is, I think, a little extreme. We all are entitled to healtcare coverage in retirement - it's called Medicare. Nurses don't want it because it doesn't cover much. In other words, high provider costs have forced Medicare to cut coverage, which forces those very same providers to demand richer retirement coverage. HELLO? This is what I mean by the spiraling economic consequences of these short-sighted, emotional policy decisions.

Do nurses deserve more? YES. But do they deserve everything at the expense of the rest of society? I don't think so. After all, what good will nurses be if the uncontrollable cost of healthcare forces the unthinkable: government-run, single-payer healthcare. We'll suffer from declining care and availability of services, and so will providers/nurses when they are forced to accept price controls like every other country that does government healthcare.

I support the Hawaii nurses 100% in their cause. Without the qualified nurses at the bedside who is there to take care of the patient.

The doctors...I think not.

For too long hospital mgt. has taken advantage of the nurses and always seem to say they haven't got the resources or money to give them raises or offer better health benefits. I have read some articles from concerned family members and I think these people should be expressing their support of nurses and urge hospital mgt. to get on the ball and realize that they need and must do the right thing. Mgt. needs to be put on the
spot. Don't blame or make the nurses look like the bad guys. Put the blame and pressure where it belongs on mgt.

I myself being a nurse from the mainland,now living here, have some mixed emotions about this strike issue. When I go to apply for a job, I ask about the retirement, medical coverage, vacation and sick leave ...that plays a big part on whether or not I want the job, not whether THEY want me. You see, if I, myself don't like what they have to offer me, then guess what?? I'm out the door and onto the next facility until the potental employer gives me something that I like. That is something my nursing instructors/professors taught me.

Like I said though, I do have mixed emotions. For the administration that is paying for the mainland nurses to come in, instead of paying airfare, room/board, meals,transportion and the temp. nurses making more than the staff nurses, why not just compromise with the nurses to get back to the main purpose....THE PATIENTS. With all the money that this strike is costing, the administration/board can settle very easily, but they too are being selfish, and putting the patients last, and their wallets first.

You know, I became a nurse because I care about people and their needs. I didn't put forth all my effort, sweat and tears into this profession to turn my back on my patients. The extra time, the gentle touch and encouragement means alot to the patients.
To the patients at these selfish facilities, especially the critically ill, my prayers are with you..

"The best medicine,is a caring heart"

I am a nurse at one of the hospitals on strike and it upsets me when people think that we are on strike for the money. besides the issues of retirement benefits, wages and mandatory overtime, what concerns me and many others the most is PTO. the bottom line of this issue is that when a nurse calls in sick, the hours will be taken not from her accumulated sick hours but will be deducted from her vacation hours. only on the fourth consecutive "sick " day will the hours be taken from her sick "bank". does that sound fair? we are expected to do mandatory overtime (meaning a 16 hour shift, from 3 pm until 7 am) at least once a week. this eventually causes burnout, resulting in a sick call. yet if we call in sick, with PTO in place, the hours would get deducted from our vacation bank. is this fair? we are not greedy, we just want what is fair.

Nurses suck

"Nurses suck"

Well, Jon, if you are ever unfortunate enough to spend a lengthy time in hospital, I think you'll quickly change your tune.

When I had such a experience a few years ago, the nurses at Castle Medical Center probably did more to save my life than the doctors did. I know for sure they did more to save what little sanity I have.

Jon Sucks! Jon, you are the axis of all Evil!!

I am a striking nurse. Been in the business for 30 yrs. I and all the nurses that walk the line with me agree that we would not be striking for higher wages alone. Patient safety is what we most desire.

It becomes scarier and more frustrating each day we go to work as we try to give the best care we can. Nursing has become more complicated as we are taking care of sicker patients and caring for their multi system diseases. Medical floors are now expected to care for patients that used to be cared for in the intensive care unit. These pts. require blood pressure, pulse, respirations, oxygen saturation every 5 min. times 4 and then every 10 to 15 min. times 4 while certain medications and blood products are being given. These patients may have multabe I.V.'s, tubes, Intake and outputs that need hourly monitering. Added to all this you may have hourly blood sugars to monitor. Then you have to be able to do a head to toe nursing assessment at least twice a shift. Then you have to find time to check and verifie Dr. orders, give multable medications, treatments, chart, order labs.

Multiply this by 8 patients and subtract the ward secretary that you should have to answer the hundreds of phone calls that takes you away from your pts. bedside. Lets not forget the reams of paperwork, and ordering labs,and supplies, PR to visiting family members, offering a bit of comfort to worried family members. A lot of us work without the benifit of these invaluable co-workers.

We often work without lunch breaks or 10 min breaks as we are supposed to get. I've worked many shifts (12 hr.) without the benifit of even going to the bathroom. The old saying Nurses have to have strong bladders is no joke.

If money was the bottom line how many nurses do you think you would have?

Six weeks in, and it looks like they've dug in for the long haul. The official strike site has been upgraded with blog software Movable Type to allow quicker posting of strike-related articles.

Notably, even though it's obviously powered by Movable Type, the HNA's webmaster has removed the required link back back to MT (i.e. the ubiquitous "Powered by..." credit).

Ever wonder why there is a MAJOR shortage of nurses. Who in their right mind would want to be one. We get not respect. Every time someone writes a new bill for improved health care, who do you think it really impacts in the way of who really does that work. NURSES!!!! Do we get any break on the stacked duties of all the former tasked NO!!!!! Someone said we knew it would be long hours when we decided to be nurses. Yes but impossible dangeous destructive hours NO WAY!!! Do you think that in the past thirty three years that I have revieled these truths to so many wide eyed inocent people who have high ideals about what nursing should be about. YES I have. How many after hearing what Nursing is really like would WANT to be a nurse. Damn few perhaps only one in a thousand of those who at first thought it would be a good idea. Most nurses who have been out of school for more than two years would do some other job if the could get close to the same pay. The culprit corporate control of nurses we must take control of our own profession. Janie Black RN

I am a nurse from the mainland and I would like to know the results of the said strike. What demands were met
as with regards to salary increase, benefits, like sickdays, vacation, etc.?
I would like to know where the Hawaii nursing salary is at now. Everyone deserves to get what is right and just especially us nurses.

Are the nurses still striking? Was a compromises reached? As a nurse of >20 yrs, I empathize. As a nurse that is considering unionizing, I am very interested. Please update.

Our nurses are indeed back to work. You may be able to look back in the archives to find details of the resolution at the site of the Hawaii Nurses Association. IIRC, they got some but nowhere near all of the benefits they were seeking.

The Kuakini contract was settled 1/7/03; Queens Medical on 1/8/03; St. Francis took longest, settling on 1/19/03. See the Honolulu Star-Bulletin's January 2003 archive (http://starbulletin.com/2003/01/index.html) for details.

As an emergency room nurse, I see a lot of different types of people...some good and some bad. This forum reminds me of the ER.
Part of what nurses are fighting for is equality. Several of my former co-workers have quit nursing and gone on to work "normal" jobs, i.e. Walmart, drug reps, etc., and most are making more money with better benefits, fewer hours, and MUCH less stress. Walk in our shoes for a couple of shifts, folks. You'll understand better.

Ryan... I also use movable type software... thought you should know that if you by a license you do not need to link back... Always pays to read the entire license...

Post a Comment