[Antiracism] [Workers' Rights/Health Care Action] Nurses Need Your Help!

[WMass Jobs With Justice]

-----Original Message-----
From: Mass. JwJ HYPERLINK "mailto:jwj at massjwj.net"jwj at massjwj.net  




HYPERLINK "http://www.massjwj.net" \n 	




Protect Patient Safety 

Greetings,

 HYPERLINK "http://img.getactivehub.com/alert_images/medical.gif"


Help Nurses Protect Patient Care!


HB 2059, The Patient Safety Act, will require the Department of Public
Health to set a limit on the number of patients a nurse has to care for at
one time. This is a common sense solution to a growing health care crisis.
For more information on the campaign, click HYPERLINK
"http://www.massjwj.net/node/2166"here.   This bill needs support from labor
and community if we are going to see it pass.   We need YOU to send a
message to our state government by clicking on the link  or calling your
state senator and letting them know you care about patient safety!



HYPERLINK
"http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/patientsafetyactnow/8x38d6nr1863edi?" 

Send a letter to the following decision maker(s): 
Governor Deval Patrick (if you live in Massachusetts)
Your Representative (if you live in Massachusetts)
Your State Senator (if you live in Massachusetts)


Below is the sample letter:

Subject: Support Patient Safety

Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

I support HB 2059, An Act Relative to Patient Safety, which will require the
Department of Public Health to set limits on the number of patients that a
nurse has to care for at once. This is a straightforward, common sense means
of protecting patient safety and reducing nurse burn out. 

I ask you to lend your support to HB 2059. Thank you! 

Sincerely,

[Your Name]



HYPERLINK
"http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/patientsafetyactnow/8x38d6nr1863edi?" 
Take Action!	

Instructions:
HYPERLINK
"http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/patientsafetyactnow/8x38d6nr1863edi?"
\nClick here to take action on this issue or choose the "Reply to Sender"
option on your email program. 


Tell-A-Friend:
Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. 
HYPERLINK
"http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/patientsafetyactnow/forward/8x38d6nr1863
edi?" \n Tell-a-Friend! 


What's At Stake:



Patient Safety Matters to Organized Labor

Understaffing Creates a Dangerous Environment for RNs and Patients:

*	In their pursuit of profits at any cost, hospitals have taken to
"speeding up the line" by giving nurses more patients than they can safely
care for at a time. This leads to a hazardous work environment where
injuries and burnout are more likely to occur. It also leads to an increase
in preventable medical errors, putting the lives of patients at risk. 

*	Nurses enter the profession to provide care to our society's most
vulnerable and to earn an honest living. They should not be subjected to
these brutal, dangerous and unfair working conditions. 

*	These conditions are driving registered nurses out of the
profession, with less than 50% of RNs in Massachusetts working bedside
(Opinion Dynamics Survey, June 2003) and over 40% of bedside nurses work
only part time (U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services).

The Patient Safety Act Protects Non-RN Staff:

*	The bill includes stipulations that would protect the jobs of
licensed practical nurses, aides and technicians, and it instructs the Dept.
of Public Health to account for these support staff in the development of
staffing limits. 

*	The Patient Safety Act will add nurses to the health care team while
protecting everyone else on it. 

The Patient Safety Act will reduce health care costs while improving
quality:

*	Health care costs continue to escalate, straining employers and
employees alike. The Patient Safety Act helps to combat rising costs by
reducing hospital stays, expensive medical errors, and the financial strain
of replacing nurses who leave the profession due to burnout. At the same
time it helps to ensure that quality of patient care will improve for those
who fall ill across the Commonwealth.


Campaign Expiration Date:
May 25, 2008 



   _____  


If you received this message from a friend, you can HYPERLINK
"http://www.unionvoice.org/massjwj/join.html?r=vdsFcg11ylgZE"sign up for
Massachusetts Jobs With Justice. 	

 

HYPERLINK "http://www.unionvoice.org" \n 	
 HYPERLINK "http://www.unionvoice.org/nlor/8x38d6nr1863edi"


 


No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition. 
Version: 7.5.516 / Virus Database: 269.21.1/1299 - Release Date: 2/26/2008
9:08 AM
 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.hampshire.edu/pipermail/antiracism/attachments/20080226/4d129d7c/attachment.htm>