San Diego Nurses for Veterans Affairs Protest Working Conditions

News of nursing strikes and protests for better wages was a popular topic in early 2016, but nurses from the Veterans Administration Healthcare System in San Diego, CA were protesting for a different reason this week – working conditions. As they protested outside the VA’s La Jolla Hospital, nurses asked for better staffing and equipment, urging administrators to fix problems that put their patients at risk.

Staffing shortages put both nurses and patients at risk, but it’s a common issue across the country. Lack of equipment and dated equipment can also become a major risk. However, despite demands that the VA Healthcare System provide new equipment and better staffing ratios, VA managers repeatedly ignored or rejected nurses concerns about these issues until it led to protesting.

These nurses are represented by the National Nurse United union, which represents over 700 nurses and skilled care providers at the San Diego VA. Union leader Erin McLeod reports that her colleagues have submitted 285 formal complaints about short staffing, missed rest breaks, and broken equipment over the past three years according to NBCSanDiego.com.

Nurses are often ignored or bullied for complaining about working conditions, ultimately hurting staff morale. The largest concern for these San Diego VA nurses is over long waits for emergency care, which puts their oldest and frailest patients at risk of death.

McLeod tells NBCSanDiego.com, “Sometimes veterans don’t get their CAT scans or their MRI in a timely manner. Sometimes medications can be given late. It puts veterans and the nurses at risk.”

It’s too early to tell whether the protesting will make a difference for these nurses and their patients, but their efforts have helped raise more awareness about these important issues in the field of nursing. To learn more about the nurses for Veterans Affairs protest, visit here.