A second group of resident and fellow physicians in Rhode Island have voted to join the Committee of Interns and Residents, which is affiliated with the Service Employees International Union.
Nearly 230 Care New England Health System resident and fellow physicians employed at Kent Hospital, Women & Infants Hospital and Butler Hospital in Rhode Island won their National Labor Relations Board elections to unionize, CIR-SEIU said in a Jan. 15 Facebook post.
The votes to unionize were 33-3 at Butler Hospital, 74-28 at Kent Hospital, and 40-8 at Women & Infants Hospital, according to the post.
Care New England resident and fellow physicians join their peers at Providence-based Rhode Island Hospital, part of Brown University Health, formerly Lifespan, who have also voted to unionize.
"The reason why we wanted to unionize is to ensure that we're all able to properly care for our patients and continue to give 100%, while also being able to take care of ourselves," said Natalie Duke, MD, a third-year psychiatry resident, said in a union news release. "We're blessed to work with each other and with our patients, so winning our election is so meaningful for us as members of this community and as physicians."
Care New England shared the following statement with Becker's:
"Medical residents, interns and fellows play a crucial role in the care of our communities and are an important part of our teams. We will work in good faith with the Committee of Interns and Residents to ensure these talented professionals have a positive learning experience and continue to provide outstanding care."
Overall, about 1,000 physicians in Rhode Island have joined CIR-SEIU this month. Several groups of Philadelphia physicians have also recently voted to unionize.