From Eureka in the north west corner of California to Apple Valley in the south, registered nurses who work at St. Joseph Health System hospitals will mark national nurses day May 6 with calls for safer patient care at their hospitals.

RNs will hold informational pickets at St. Mary Apple Valley, St. Joseph Hospital in Eureka, and Queen of the Valley hospital in Napa.  

Apple Valley – Picket, 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., Highway 18, in front of hospital.

Eureka – Picket, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., in front of hospital sign on Harrison Ave.

Napa – Picket, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., 1000 Trancas St., in front of hospital.

At each location, the central theme is safe staffing, calling on the hospitals to assure there are adequate number of RNs and support staff to provide safe, therapeutic care for all patients at all times.

The RNs are also concerned about inadequate supplies and training at the hospitals, proposed cuts in health coverage and retirement security for the RNs, and that St. Joseph should adhere to its avowed mission of “dignity” and “justice” by treating nurses with the respect commensurate with their service as caregivers.

"St. Joseph Eureka's Nurses are tired of being asked to do more with less,” said St. Joseph Eureka RN Lesley Ester. “Chronic short staffing and inadequate supplies lead to an environment where nurses and patients aren't safe. We're celebrating Nurses Day by protesting these conditions and demanding that St. Joseph Health System make our community hospital one that we can be proud of again."

“St. Mary's has changed dramatically in the last few years.  Patient care is no longer our focus; profitability is their main focus.  The cuts in ancillary staff and supplies make the jobs we do very difficult. The St. Mary's management team has no respect for the jobs we do for our patients,” said St. Mary’s Apple Valley RN Michelle Stuebe.  “Our patients deserve better care than what we can provide at this time. St. Mary's stopped celebrating Nurses Week several years ago.  We are hopeful that this protest will send a message to St. Joseph's management that the nursing staff will fight for what is right for our patients, our families and for our practice.”

"St. Joseph Health System claims to embrace core values of dignity and justice,” sais Queen of the Valley RN Leigh Glasgow. “But instead, the Health System serves up drastic cuts in health and retirement benefits, engages in bad faith bargaining and systemic union busting, and can't even meet the bare minimum requirements for providing charity care under state law. Enough is enough. Nurses are celebrating Nurses Day by demanding that St. Joseph Health System return to its core values."