Nurses protest outside Central Florida Regional Medical Center

By Christian De La Rosa
August 05, 2011

SANFORD -- Central Florida Regional Medical Center nurses spoke out Friday, citing serious patient care issues at their hospital.

About 50 registered nurses picketed outside the hospital in Sanford, alerting the community about what they say is inadequate patient care.

They said the hospital isn't adequately staffed with nurses.

Protestors said there are just not enough nurses for the number of patients at the hospital.

"It doesn't have anything to do with a nursing shortage. It's a staffing issue. We are staffed bare bones and that's dangerous for our patients," said Pamela Young, a nurse at Central Florida Regional Medical Center.

The complaint is also linked to new contract negotiations.

Hospital officials responded to the protest with this statement:

"We do not anticipate any inconvenience or disruption to services. The hospital has been bargaining in good faith with NNOC-FL since April of this year over a nurses contract. As bargaining moves ahead, we will continue to provide uninterrupted, high-quality healthcare to our patients and the community we serve."