Tucson nurses speak out against Carondelet, claiming ‘unsafe staffing conditions’ amid pandemic

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TUCSON (KVOA) – Several nurses at Carondelet St. Mary’s Hospital spoke about the unsafe staffing situation at their facility during a press conference Wednesday.

The nurses say the health network is putting patients and the local community at risk.

“As our performance during the pandemic demonstrated, we are able to provide excellent care in exceptional circumstances,” said RN Melissa Fatula. “But now our employer has to move up and provide us with the resources we need for our work.”

According to a press release shared Monday afternoon, the nurses claim the medical facility had unsafe personal protective equipment practices in January amid rising cases of the COVID-19 virus in the area. The nurses said that although the hospital reportedly made “over $ 500 million last year and already $ 97 million in the first quarter of this year,” hospital conditions have not improved and “conditions have been unsafe in recent months retained by the administration ”.

“We expected the staffing levels to improve as the pandemic subsides,” said RN Monica Silva. “Instead, our hospital remains dangerously understaffed on a regular basis. We became nurses to care for our community and it is frustrating when conditions in the hospital hinder our ability to provide that care. ”

Carondelet published a statement against the allegations. The declaration can be viewed in its entirety below.

Carondelet values ​​the commitment and professionalism of our caregivers and other caregivers. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have supported our hospitals and caregivers with resources, PPE and other equipment to provide safe and vital care to our patients.

In one of the most difficult environments in history, steps have been taken to ensure that resources for life-saving care remain uninterrupted. The hospital consistently adheres to the personnel guidelines of the collective agreement and actively recruits nurses. Carondelet offers new hire incentive plans and we encourage nurses and support staff to apply for vacancies.

Our community can rest assured that Carondelet is focused on delivering exceptional, safe and high quality care to our patients. Our hospitals received an “A” rating in Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Safety Ratings in Spring 2021, reflecting our commitment to safe, high-quality patient care.

We are disappointed that the union has taken this measure, which in our view is neither constructive nor necessary. Carondelet welcomes opportunities to work together and work together to find solutions to challenges. It is our obligation to continue to focus on delivering the highest levels of patient safety, quality care and patient experience to the community we serve.

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