Burlington — Meagan Martin said he felt safer when he was sent to Afghanistan than when he was working in the emergency department at the University of Vermont Medical Center.
At a press conference held by a nurse on Thursday across from the hospital where they work, she said, “There are days when I go to work and feel more dangerous to my body than when I was stationed as a flight nurse in the Middle East. “. ..
Martin and two other nurses say violence is escalating in the emergency department, and they characterize it as a lack of action by hospital managers, Chittenden County lawyer Sarah George, police, and the state. Pointed out what was.
“We are here today because we have used our voice and body to fight for you and us, for a safer department, and we are asked by the admin. It doesn’t look like it’s there, “said Amanda Young in an emergency, a nurse in the department at 45 years and 13 years. “I hope the community hears our plea and knows that we are working hard here to keep you safe, but we’re tired so right now. We need to participate in our voice. “
Hospital managers admit that it is a problem. “You know, they’re right. Hospital spokesman Annie McKin said in an interview Thursday.
George said he had spoken to the nurse for an hour after hearing that his name was mentioned at a press conference.
“I was shocked and really really worried about what I was hearing,” she said. “I can only talk to my office. I told them if there were certain cases involving striking staff, strangling staff, punching staff, head-butting staff. It was to take those cases seriously, and if they were told we weren’t, they would have to call me and ask me directly, “she said.
According to a press release sent Wednesday by the Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, 98% of nurses reported verbal assaults and 78% said they had been physically assaulted in the past year.
The UVM Health Network responded shortly after in a press release, recognizing the “acute effects” of annoying national trends and calling for community action to address the increased levels of violence reported by healthcare professionals. ..
Meanwhile, the emergency department is literally and figuratively bleeding staff, the nurse said. Due to the intensification of violence, some of her colleagues have resigned or resigned from full-time nurses.
Martin, a forensic nurse who worked for four years at the University of Vermont Medical Center and 14 years in emergency medicine, is one of them. She had rules, accountability, and support in the army, but as an emergency department nurse, she said, “I often feel lonely.”
Martin notified her and she said she was planning to work as a school nurse instead.
A few months ago, registered nurse Eisha Lichtenstein, 31, said the staff was “struck at running speed by a man more than twice as big as her” while she was protecting a small child. I said I saw it.
Liechtenstein said he understood that nursing was a difficult profession, but “I didn’t expect this level of violence and I myself on the day it was heading in my direction. I don’t feel ready to protect. “
The nurses said they have repeatedly raised these issues to the government, but they feel that nothing has been done to make the workplace safer. They use metal detectors that are no longer in use, deploy two or more guards and armed guards 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, weapon removal and storage procedures, improved outdoor lighting, and more. We demand strict security.
“It is unacceptable and unconscionable for our administration to know countless injuries, hear our plea, and do everything within their power to protect us,” said the year. Above that said Liechtenstein, who moved from inpatient nursing to the emergency department.
According to McKin, the emergency department has two guards during the day and three at night. Across the campus, hospitals aim to hire an additional eight to reach the 36 who they consider fully staffed.
She said some security work had already been posted and the hospital was trying to find a metal detector trained operator for some time, but is said to wait a year. Given the difficulty of staffing, she said, “We are doing what we can in the reality we are facing, but now it’s really hard.”
“I’m very concerned about that,” said Dr. Stephen Leffler, president and chief operating officer of the medical center, McKin said. He is losing sleep on it. “We are taking a step forward and doing what we can,” she added.
George said she has instructed her staff of her 14 lawyers to warn her about cases involving health care workers so that she can handle them personally. rice field. She also said she shared her contact information with her nurse so that her nurse could contact her directly. George said she did after her nurse told her she was involved in one such case where she didn’t go anywhere.
“I didn’t know how terribly dangerous it was for them there,” she said. “My mother, brother and sister-in-law are all Dartmouth Hitchcock nurses. I’m very involved in the profession. I’m deeply interested in the job and how I do things I want to make sure that the already incredibly difficult tasks are not difficult for me. “
Fat Snell, an intensive care nurse and vice chairman of the nurses’ union, said safety demands have become part of collective bargaining. After her press conference, she said, “It’s scary to have to negotiate to keep people safe.” “This can be seen everywhere, but unfortunately ED is at the forefront of workplace violence.”
The Vermont Hospital Health Systems Association reports that it has heard many of these complaints, and the organization works with hospital leaders, community service providers, state authorities, and law enforcement agencies to address the issue.
“Our goal is to ensure that the community receives the care they need in a safe environment. Unfortunately, there is an increasing number of workplace violence in our hospitals,” said the association’s president and CEO. Executive Assistant Jocelyn Bolduc said in a statement. “This is happening in large and small hospitals across the country and is totally unacceptable.”
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