Santa Fe County Commission Sides with St. Vincent Nurses in Contract Talks
by Fonda Osborn
Santa Fe County Commissioners Virginia Vigil, Kathy Holian, and Liz Stefanics admonished executives of Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center during a hearing Tuesday, where nurses and technical staff represented by District 1199 of the National Union of Hospital & Health Care Workers (NUHHCW) urged commissioners to hold the hospital accountable for its use of taxpayer dollars.
“Christus has to respect the tradition of unions in our community,” said Commissioner Holian. “Santa Fe is a union town.”
Commission Chairwoman Vigil agreed.
She said that St. Vincent’s is a community hospital, and, as such, it should benefit the community.
“I'm concerned that we no longer have a community hospital whose primary concern is the health of our patients,” Vigil said. “I'm concerned their priority has shifted from a local community hospital to corporate America. Corporate America in the way it has been shown to us through Christus St. Vincent does not work in Santa Fe.”
Meanwhile, Commissioner Stefanics lauded the efforts of St. Vincent nurses to keep Santa Feans healthy.
St. Vincent’s nurses and technical staff have been in contract talks with Christus executives since May.
Recent revelations have put the lie to the claim that St. Vincent’s lacks the resources to protect patient care and safety.
According to tax documents submitted to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Christus St. Vincent executives have been taking money out of the hospital to increase their pay, instead of reinvesting those profits in the patients and staff who helped make those profits possible in the first place.
That is why the hospital’s proposal to eliminate the ability of nurses and hospital staff to continue providing compassionate, community-based care through safe staffing ratios makes no sense.
Similarly, Christus St. Vincent’s proposal to eliminate the federally guaranteed right of nurses and staff to collectively bargain over new working conditions would further jeopardize patient safety.
If the hospital fails to reach agreement with the nurses on a new contract by the end of July, there may be a strike.
District 1199 is affiliated with the American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME).
Showing posts with label Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. Show all posts
Jul 28, 2011
Jul 20, 2011
Corporate Greed; "It's all in the Name of Money!"
Here is an open letter from one of our patron. The Eye feels it is important to support a good cause for the right reasons. Please give your support to the men and women who care for you or your families’ in times of need.
Playing Doctor is No Joke
By Frank Froschle
A recent article in the Albuquerque Journal shows that executives of Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe have been bargaining in bad faith with the hospital’s nurses and staff.
According to the article, the hospital made more than $21 million in 2009.
A year earlier, the hospital cleared almost $19 million.
Over this same time period, Christus St. Vincent CEO Alex Valdez’s annual salary increased from $271,000 in 2004 to $615,000 in 2009, while Board Member Ernie Sadau received more than $1,019,675 in 2009 from the Christus home office in Texas.
The pattern is clear.
Hospital executives have been taking money out of the hospital to increase their pay, instead of sharing those profits with the patients and staff who helped make those profits possible in the first place.
In 2008, the average nurse at St. Vincent’s earned $52,000 and received no raises.
Now hospital executives are proposing to endanger patient safety by reducing staffing ratios.
St. Vincent’s is New Mexico’s oldest hospital.
Unfortunately, it hasn’t been the same since Texas-based Christus Health took over the hospital and hired some high-priced California lawyers to start rationing care.
While this approach may have raised profits, it has compromised patient safety and endangered the kind of ethical, compassionate, community-based care that St. Vincent’s nurses and staff have been delivering for more than 35 years.
Mr. Valdez and all those out-of-town Christus lawyers and executives need to settle the contract in favor of St. Vincent’s nurses and staff, so they can get back to doing their jobs.
Frank Froschle
2320 Brother Abdon
Santa Fe, NM 87505
Playing Doctor is No Joke
By Frank Froschle
A recent article in the Albuquerque Journal shows that executives of Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe have been bargaining in bad faith with the hospital’s nurses and staff.
According to the article, the hospital made more than $21 million in 2009.
A year earlier, the hospital cleared almost $19 million.
Over this same time period, Christus St. Vincent CEO Alex Valdez’s annual salary increased from $271,000 in 2004 to $615,000 in 2009, while Board Member Ernie Sadau received more than $1,019,675 in 2009 from the Christus home office in Texas.
The pattern is clear.
Hospital executives have been taking money out of the hospital to increase their pay, instead of sharing those profits with the patients and staff who helped make those profits possible in the first place.
In 2008, the average nurse at St. Vincent’s earned $52,000 and received no raises.
Now hospital executives are proposing to endanger patient safety by reducing staffing ratios.
St. Vincent’s is New Mexico’s oldest hospital.
Unfortunately, it hasn’t been the same since Texas-based Christus Health took over the hospital and hired some high-priced California lawyers to start rationing care.
While this approach may have raised profits, it has compromised patient safety and endangered the kind of ethical, compassionate, community-based care that St. Vincent’s nurses and staff have been delivering for more than 35 years.
Mr. Valdez and all those out-of-town Christus lawyers and executives need to settle the contract in favor of St. Vincent’s nurses and staff, so they can get back to doing their jobs.
Frank Froschle
2320 Brother Abdon
Santa Fe, NM 87505
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