PeaceHealth in Bellingham, Wash., has announced nurses at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center will switch from the industry norm of 12-hour shifts to eight-hour shifts, sparking outcry from nursing staff, according to a Bellingham Herald report.
PeaceHealth officials said the management change will improve patient safety by reducing work fatigue. The changes are expected to take effect by the end of January. In response, Washington State Nurses Association, representing more than 700 registered nurses at St. Joseph Medical Center, held a rally yesterday to protest the change.
The nurses argued hospital administration is implementing the new work shifts for financial reasons, not patient safety, and the hospital's proposal to change shift lengths does not address the underlying problem of understaffing, which nurses have identified as a key safety concern.
PeaceHealth officials said the management change will improve patient safety by reducing work fatigue. The changes are expected to take effect by the end of January. In response, Washington State Nurses Association, representing more than 700 registered nurses at St. Joseph Medical Center, held a rally yesterday to protest the change.
The nurses argued hospital administration is implementing the new work shifts for financial reasons, not patient safety, and the hospital's proposal to change shift lengths does not address the underlying problem of understaffing, which nurses have identified as a key safety concern.
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