Inept And Abusive Nurses Licensed To Practice In N.Y. Due To Weak Vetting
ProPublica reviews disciplinary records, arrest reports and court filings to find disturbing examples. In other medical personnel news, low pay is driving Texas nurses away, advocates say. In Nebraska, the governor signs new whistleblower protections for nurses. And health workers' ability to unionize is under review in a D.C. circuit court.
ProPublica:
Weak Oversight Lets Dangerous Nurses Work In New York
Thomas Maino knew he was going to die. Suffering from serious ailments, the 93-year-old veteran had rejected invasive treatments and asked only that he be made comfortable after he was admitted to a Syracuse nursing home in November 2008. But on a snowy Saturday morning the following January, his moans could be heard down the hallway. (Porat, Adams and Huseman, 4/7)
The Dallas Morning News:
Nurses Leaving Texas Nursing Homes For Better Pay ‘At McDonald’s Or Wendy’s,’ Advocates Say
Nurses and other medical staff are leaving their positions in Texas’ nursing homes because of low pay, advocates say, setting up the possibility for a nursing shortage in long-term care facilities as the state’s 65-and-over population booms in the next few years. The state’s low Medicaid reimbursement rate contributes to the low pay, a dynamic that’s driving nurses out of nursing homes or out of the health industry entirely, said Julie Sulik, vice president of Clinical Services for Southwest Long Term Management. (Blanchard, 4/6)
The Associated Press:
Ricketts Approves Whistleblower Protections For Nurses
Gov. Pete Ricketts has approved new whistleblower protections for nurses in Nebraska. The governor signed a bill Wednesday that would ban retaliation against nurses who file complaints with the state. It also would guarantee confidentiality for nurses even if their allegations later become a public record. (4/6)
Reuters:
D.C. Circuit Considers Union Organizing In Healthcare Via Smaller Units
A Chicago teaching hospital urged a federal appeals court on Tuesday to overturn a National Labor Relations Board ruling that allows unions to organize in healthcare facilities by adding so-called micro units of workers into existing bargaining units. (Iafolla, 4/6)
