Swedish Hospitals - Strike Potential January 28th (design, nursing)

[Seacove]

Would recommend Evergreen instead, IMO better hospital anyway.

[AADAD]

Originally Posted by Seacove

Would recommend Evergreen instead, IMO better hospital anyway.

Thank you for posting.

[AADAD]

Today. From ABC News

Swedish closed two of its seven emergency departments — at its campuses in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood and in Redmond, Washington — beginning at 7 p.m. Monday and said they would remain closed during the strike.

Swedish said it would spend millions on replacement workers. A final number wasn't clear, but Swedish Health Services Chief Executive Guy Hudson called $11 million "a start."

"Safe patient care is our number one priority," Hudson said. "As it has for 110 years, Swedish will continue to provide high-quality, compassionate care to patients and their families, even during the strike."

WE strike as what Dr. Hudson says is untrue. Working without breaks, cleaning rooms with deadly bacteria with unproven science, nurses and techs assaulted by alcoholic patients. These are the realities which face us daily on the job.

[AADAD]

Hours and hours in the rain, we stand and we walk. Thousands of honking horns, cops, people who live here, dogs barking and people yelling their support. It is wonderful to represent you. WE are on strike FOR you...

In addition to refusing to support safe patient care, we are told that we cannot come on to campus, we cannot buy coffee at
starbucks in the hospital lobby and if we park on campus we will be towed. They have locked us out of our educational on line program.

This is going to get ugly Seattle. Support US please.

[Seacove]

With all due respect, the strike is not for us. It’s just not.

[AADAD]

Originally Posted by Seacove

With all due respect, the strike is not for us. It’s just not.

Patient safety is our number one priority. Staffing affects that. We are advocating for increased staffing so I would challenge your assertion.

Please read below. It illuminates our position.

https://dpeaflcio.org/programs-publi...-and-patients/

[AADAD]

Several weeks ago, a young person came in to our unit withdrawing from alcohol. Withdrawal can be life threatening and compromises the brain's ability to send accurate signals to the body. Breathing can be affected but the first sign is tremors and hallucinations.

During one such episode, the patient grabbed a tray off his table and screaming ran towards a nursing assistant who ran away. Thankfully we were close at hand and could stop him. It took 4 security guards and 2 nurses to get him under control. Several people were punched and spit upon.

These events area daily reality in a modern acute care hospital. On that floor, Swedish routinely removes staff to work in other more needed areas and this occurs hour by hour. Left understaffed, we are vulnerable. In addition, we cannot take our lunch breaks and 12 hours frequently turns into 13.

We are tired of asking for help and being told that Swedish provides a safe environment. it is not accurate. WE STRIKE

[AADAD]

The "final' day of our strike was very successful.

Below is video from day # 2. It was thousands. Next step hopefully management will provide an offer to provide staffing which reflects the reality of the modern acute care hospital.

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/str...FBIIROTNLLQN4/

[AADAD]

It appears the truth of our statements are being supported. Thank you Seattle Times

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle...e%20subscriber

[musicfamly5]

I get that the staff aren't asking for higher wages but the reality is that low wages are the reason no one wants to risk being overworked or their personal saftey. Other Providence hospitals and clinics elsewhere in the state are able to find enough staff. The problem with the ones in Seattle lies mostly due to the location of Seattle itself.

I don't think it's shocking that incoming nurses would prefer to work in locations with less crime, smaller commutes, and better CoL. I lived near the Swedish Ballard location and the amount of crime and theft is terrible and I couldn't move fast enough. I couldn't imagine having to physically deal with the area everyday.

While I agree Swedish needs to address the staffing, a huge part of that is going to be directly related to wages. No one is going to offer to work harder for less wages then their peers and you can't force people to work were they don't want to. I'd anything Swedish needs to get the city to protect their nursing staff by addressing the issues of saftey and the fact more and more mid-class wage earners are looking outside of Seattle for work due to the ongoing conditions of the city.

Again not bashing OP or the actual strike since the need is obvious and something needs to be done. But I do see another problem with the staffing issue that is as much on the city as Swedish.