RNs at Enloe Medical Center demand that management prioritize patient safety and address short staffing, inadequate PPE, and hospital preparedness for natural disasters

Registered nurses at Enloe Medical Center in Chico, Calif., will hold an informational picket on May 14 as management refuses to address issues of safe staffing, infection control protocols for safe patient care during the pandemic, or hospital preparedness for natural disasters, announced California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) today.

The nurses have been in bargaining for a new contract with Enloe since October 2020. The current agreement expired in March 2021.

Nurses say that they deserve to be protected. “As a longtime member of this community, and a longtime nurse at Enloe, we have seen more than our fair share of crises that have affected our community,” said Alma Gamboa-Applebee, RN in the neonatal intensive care unit. “Each time our nurses have risen to the challenge to care for whomever walks through our doors.”

“While Enloe officials want to boast about an award we received for being one of the best hospitals in the nation, we continue to work with poor-quality personal protective equipment, such as gloves that tear or rip, and poor-quality face masks that are not even for medical use,” said Gamboa-Applebee. “We have even had to ration chemo gowns and baby wipes, even though data we collected showed there wasn’t a shortage at any of our neighboring hospitals.”

• What: Informational Picket for patient safety
• When: Friday, May 14, 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
• Where: Outside Enloe Medical Center, on Esplanade

If you are interested in interviewing a nurse or sending a camera crew to the informational picket, contact Joe Henry 916-801-3561.

“Who will take care of your loved ones if their nurses are ill?” asks Lisa Ceynowa, RN in the Med Neuro unit. “Over this past year, PPE safety guidelines have been relaxed for a new unknown virus. Wildfires are also a regular occurrence in our area, and we need to be prepared with enough N95s on hand for staff. Keeping three months of PPE on hand and following rigorous scientific protocols for safety should be in our contract.”

“We are proud to have cared for our patients during such a difficult year,” said Gamboa-Applebee. “But now it is time for Enloe management to show us the respect we deserve and work with us to settle a contract that allows us to provide the highest quality of care to our patients.”

CNA represents 1,000 nurses at Enloe Medical Center. CNA/National Nurses United is the largest and fastest growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the nation with 100,000 members in more than 200 facilities throughout California and more than 170,000 RNs nationwide.