New York City – Registered nurses at the Manhattan VA Hospital, part of the New York Harbor Healthcare System, are to participate in informational leafleting on Wednesday, August 29,  to share with the community details of conditions within the facility that they believe undercut patient care standards.  The nurses are members of National Nurses United, the largest union and professional association of registered nurses in the country—with 175,000 members.
 
Management at the Manhattan VA Hospital has no set RN staffing guidelines in place, guidelines which are key to providing quality patient care at the facility, say nurses.  On the telemetry floors, where heart patients are cared for, on some shifts the number of RNs has been reduced by as much as half in the last 18 months.
 
WHAT:  Informational leafleting regarding conditions at Manhattan VA
WHEN:  Wednesday, August 29: 6:30–8:00am. • 11:00am–1:30pm • 3:30–5:30pm
WHERE: Manhattan VA Hospital, 423 East 23rd St., NYC (between 1st Ave &-FDR Dr.)
 
Across the board, say nurses, staffing at the VA facility remains inadequate, with management refusing to share any detail of staffing guidelines or plans.  There are, as well, equipment shortages and concerns about adequate maintenance, both conditions expressed to management by the RNs.  There has been no response from management to date.
 
“Our veterans deserve a lot better,” said Sam Aldi, RN.  “We receive no information, no planning, no feedback from management.   It is a brick wall.  That helps no one, especially patients for whom quality of care remains an issue.  That’s the priority for us: getting our patients quality care.”

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