Tuition Reimbursement: The hospital has denied some RN tuition reimbursements saying that the courses are not within the guidelines. Management has now reversed three denials and paid the nurses.
If you are having difficulty receiving approval for your tuition reimbursement or pay for attending a mandatory class, please notify Union Rep Phyllis Lugo immediately. Per our Union contract, you are entitled to this reimbursement as long as it is related to your job. You MUST complete the Tuition Assistance form and obtain approval 30 days prior to the class.
RRT: We are moving forward to implement a strictly RRT person(s) in order to leave the charge nurse in place at all times.
Case Management: In the latest staff meeting for Case Management, it was made clear that Case Managers are to achieve 100 percent completion on all cases each day. Nearly every day, a CM RN has up to 30 patient cases to work on.
Carpeting Issues: New carpet has been installed in the hallway leading to ICU/CCU and in the CCU unit. The problem seems to be that the new carpet does not allow for the beds and equipment to roll freely, which is making it difficult for one person to transport a patient without the risk of injury. This has been reported to both HR and the CNO. They are looking into the situation and hope to have this resolved soon.
Informed Consent Forms: The California Code of Regulations, Title 22, Section 72528 states:
“(a) It is the responsibility of the attending licensed healthcare practitioner acting within the scope of his or her professional licensure to determine what information a reasonable person in the patient’s condition and circumstances would consider material to a decision to accept or refuse a proposed treatment or procedure. Information that is commonly appreciated need not be disclosed. The disclosure of the material information and obtaining informed consent shall be the responsibility of the licensed healthcare practitioner who, acting within the scope of his or her professional licensure, performs or orders the procedure or treatment for which informed consent is required.”
Please keep in mind that it is the attending physicians’ responsibility to obtain consent for procedures NOT the nurse. A nurse’s responsibility to the consent form is as a WITNESS ONLY. If you have any concerns, please refer to Title 22, Section 72528. It is important to remember that if any changes need to be made on the consent that only the physician makes the corrections.
OR Nurses On-Call While On Shift: OR nurses are being scheduled to be on-call while they are still on shift. The shift is from 2:45 p.m. to 11:15 p.m. and on call time starts at 11 p.m. Past practice has been that they clock out then back in at the start time of on-call and are paid call pay. The hospital is trying to change that practice and not pay call rates until an 8-hour employee had worked over a 12-hour shift. Since our meeting, management has reinstated call pay as it was.
Clinical Ladder: We have agreed to terms of the Clinical Ladder. We used the method of “interest based” which allowed us to sit with management and discuss the purpose of our needs along with the needs of the hospital. This method also allowed both parties to talk openly with one another either in person or by email in order to obtain information. The hospital is working on putting the booklet together for proofing.
Staffing Committee Meetings for 2012
11 a.m. to Noon in Classroom 3 January 13, March 9, May 11, July 13, September 14, November 9
Labor Management Committee Meetings for 2012
11 a.m. to Noon in Classroom 3 February 9, April 13, June 8, August 10, October 12, December 8
Member participation is always welcome; please let me know if you would like to attend by calling 818-433-2217 or emailing lugop@seiu121rn.org.
Steward Meeting: February date to be determined
If you are interesting in becoming a steward, please do not hesitate to call me. There will be a steward training class held March 2 in the Local 121RN North Hollywood office. I encourage you to become a part of making your union strong.