Sixth round of MNA complaints levied against Saint Vincent claim understaffing played a role in two patient deaths

Photo | Grant Welker Nurses picketing outside Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester in 2021

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The Massachusetts Nursing Association has filed a sixth round of complaints to state and federal regulators regarding conditions at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester, alleging understaffing at the facility played a role in the deaths of two patients.

The latest complaints, part of a feud between the nurses union and the hospital dating back to the 2021-2022 nurses strike at the facility, include allegations regarding the impact of insufficient staffing levels and an alleged restriction on IV fluid usage mandated by hospital CEO Carolyn Jackson. The complaints were addressed to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

“We need those responsible for ensuring the safety of our hospitals to step in and prevent this hospital from what Tenet is doing to undermine the care our patients receive,” Carla LeBlanc, a nurse at St. Vincent and member of the Massachusetts Nurses Association Board of Directors, said in a Monday press release from the MNA. “We have made repeated appeals to our management to address our concerns, filed more than 1,000 official reports to them of conditions that jeopardize the safety of our patients, and we have now filed six complaints to all the agencies responsible for the safety of hospital patients yet still patients are falling, patients are suffering preventable complications and yes, patients are dying as a result of Tenet’s practices and the lack of oversight from state and federal regulators.”

The MNA’s most recent complaints claim two patients died at the facility when staffing ratios prevented timely dialysis treatments and other aspects of care. Six nurses were overseeing 12 patients the night of the two deaths, resulting in one patient’s dialysis treatment not being given and another patient’s treatment being cut short, with both patients later dying, according to reporting from the Boston Globe.

Saint Vincent and DPH response

Saint Vincent pushed back against the MNA's latest claims in an email to WBJ but did not address the specifics of the allegations.

"Saint Vincent Hospital remains focused on providing high-quality as well as regionally and nationally recognized healthcare services for our community. We do not condone the MNA’s tactics of organizing publicity stunts, spreading false rumors and intimidating our colleagues," wrote Shawn Middleton, Saint Vincent communications and public relations manager. "The MNA’s accusations are disrespectful to the dedicated nurses, physicians and staff at Saint Vincent Hospital who prioritize caring for our patients. There is no doubt that these unfounded attacks are related to upcoming negotiations with the union at Saint Vincent, a tactic that the union uses in connection with contract negotiations with virtually all other systems across the state. We hope the MNA will reconsider its approach, and instead collaborate with us, and other systems facing similar staffing shortages, to increase healthcare access for the communities we serve."

Saint Vincent is owned by Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, which owns Framingham Union Hospital and Leonard Morse Hospital in Natick, both part of MetroWest Medical Center.

“As an organization, the MNA represents nurses and health care professionals working in 70% of the state’s acute care hospitals, including the hospitals previously owned by Steward Healthcare, and we can state without equivocation or hyperbole that the conditions at Saint Vincent Hospital are the worst among all those providers – by far,” the complaint reads, with the MNA calling for a meeting with the DPH commissioner Dr. Robert Goldstein. “As such, we believe the DPH, as they have done in the case of the Steward facilities, should immediately assign DPH inspectors on site on a daily basis to ensure that this administration fulfills its responsibility to provide the care these patients and this community deserve.”

The DPH said it has received the MNA's complaints and has agreed to a meeting between Goldstein and the union.

“The Department of Public Health takes all complaints seriously and is committed to ensuring that hospitals meet their obligations to provide safe, efficient, high-quality health care for all patients," DPH Spokesperson Katheleen Conti wrote in an email to WBJ. "The Department has investigated prior complaints about Saint Vincent Hospital and conducted numerous onsite visits to assess their care. DPH has received and is reviewing the latest complaint from the MNA.”

Additional complaints

The MNA claims understaffing has led to at least 96 patients developing hospital-acquired bedsores, with the hospital allegedly threatening to fire nurses over the issue rather than addressing the root causes of the problem.

Photo | Courtesy of Saint Vincent Hospital

Carolyn Jackson, CEO of Saint Vincent Hospital, in Worcester

The MNA’s complaints go beyond issues of staffing; with hospitals nationwide dealing with a shortage of IV fluids and medications, the union alleges St. Vincent CEO Carolyn Jackson instituted restrictions on IV fluid usage it called draconian, claiming the policy has harmed patient care.

The union took issue with the hospital’s pharmaceutical practices, claiming multiple instances where unsafe labeling practices or other errors have put patients at risk.

“What these complaints demonstrate is the complete breakdown and failure of this hospital system to ensure the conditions required to take care of acutely ill patients,” Dr. Mary Sue Howle, the MNA’s Associate Director of Nursing, said in the press release. “On every level, in every aspect of patient care delivery, Tenet is failing these nurses and their patients.”

In addition to complaints filed this week, MNA has levied allegations against Saint Vincent in complaints to regulators in December 2023, January, March, April, and May, with nurses petitioning leadership to raise staffing levels in February.

The DPH disclosed it closed one investigation into the hospital in September, later revealing in October it has opened investigations into Tenet-owned Framingham Union Hospital and Leonard Morse Hospital.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated to include a statement from Saint Vincent Hospital and the Department of Public Health.

Eric Casey is the managing editor at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.