SAN FRANCISCO – Registered nurses at 13 Sutter Health hospitals and two other Northern California healthcare facilities announced Sept. 28 that they plan to strike this month.
The strike is schedule for Oct. 10 and 11, and could involve nearly 5,000 nurses. Some of the affected hospitals include Mills-Peninsula Health Services in Burlingame and San Mateo; Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley and Oakland, as well as Sutter Solano Medical Center. Others include Vallejo’s and the Fremont-Rideout Health Group in Yuba City and Marysville.
Of the 13 Northern California hospitals in the Sutter Health chain, 10 are in contract negotiations with the nurses union.
“We are deeply concerned about the quality of care and the availability of patient services in communities that have long supported Sutter hospitals,” said Jan Rodolfo, an RN at Summit and chair of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee Sutter wide Facility Bargaining Council. “Inadequate staffing is a persistent problem at Sutter facilities. No one understands what staffing we need to provide safe patient care better than bedside nurses.”
Nurse-to-patient ratio is one major concern expressed by the union. Other issues include breaks; rapid response team support; safe patient handling; cuts in patient services; healthcare benefits; and retirement benefits.
