Leominster nurses protest as contract negotiations require mediator

Photo | Jennifer Johnson Nurses and supporters held a candlelight vigil to protest proposed cuts at the Leominster campus of UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital.

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By Thomas Grillo

More than 80 nurses and supporters held a candlelight vigil at the UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital in Leominster on Tuesday as the contract negotiations between the healthcare workers' union and management have reached an impasse.

The talks between the union and the hospital began last summer, and nine sessions have been held so far. The next contract negotiation session is set for Dec. 17. Both parties have agreed to have a federal mediator.

The gathering Tuesday was to highlight what the Massachusetts Nurses Association union representatives say is management’s plan to trim staff and increase nurse-to-patient ratios, which the union nurses say will jeopardize patient safety.

“We gathered to mourn the loss of services, staff, and the hospital’s attempt to eliminate more nursing positions,” said Miko Nakagawa, an registered nurse who attended the silent rally.

In a statement, Steven Roach, interim president of UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital, said differences between union nurses and management should be settled at the bargaining table.

“We are still very early in this process with much work to be done,” Roach said. “We look forward to a respectful and robust discussion that will clearly outline the concerns on both sides ... Though we have great respect for our caregivers, we will not engage nor respond to preposterous claims that challenge our commitment to patient safety.”

Representatives from UMass Memorial declined to be interviewed for this story.

In the latest safety ratings from the national nonprofit The Leapfrog Group released in November, UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital's Leominster campus received a B score. The hospital climbed back up after receiving five consecutive C ratings. Among the UMass Memorial hospitals, it scored higher than both Worcester hospitals, which received Cs, and lower than the Clinton campus, which received an A.

UMass Memorial merged the HealthAllIance hospital in Leominster with Clinton Hospital back in 2016, creating two facilities and campuses with one administrative function. After the merger, the losses for the hospital went from $3.9 million in 2014 to $13.6 million in 2018, according to the Center For Health Information and Analysis, a state agency analyzing health care in Massachusetts.

Nakagawa said in the union negotiations, management has proposed cutting nursing positions, increasing the number of patients that a nurse is required to care for at one time; and to force so-called charge nurses to have patients. A charge nurse is a registered nurse who manages a hospital ward by supervising staff, preparing schedules, monitoring admissions and discharges while performing many nursing tasks.

“Our previous contract called for five patients to one nurse,” Nakagawa said. “Now, they want to increase it to six patients per nurse.”

Nakagawa said she has worked at the hospital for 23 years and takes patient safety seriously.

“I would not make a preposterous claim,” she said of Roach's statement. “Today, patients who are admitted to a hospital are much sicker than 20 years ago. We need all hands on deck if we are to make sure patients get the care they deserve.”