The nurses, represented by Service Employees International Union Local 121RN, advocated for safe staffing as well as quality patient care.
“We’re here to fight patient-staffing corporate ratios for our nurses so we can provide what we want for our patients’ full-on care,” intensive care unit nurse Jennifer Hardy, union steward, told Thousand Oaks Acorn. “This is our job and we love it.”
Los Robles, which is part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, stood behind its current staffing levels.
“Providing safe patient care is the hospital’s highest priority, and we believe it is staffed appropriately,” Adam Blackstone, marketing and public relations vice president, said in an email to the publication.
He added, “The hospital has an excellent relationship with regulators and makes every effort to comply with its obligations under the law and, significantly, to provide patients with the safest environment possible. Moreover, we have added RNs and support staff such as lunch relief RNs and certified nursing assistants.”
The picket took place as nurses are negotiating a new contract with management, according to the report. The current contract is set to end Friday.
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