NY Nurse: June 2021

May 25th will be marked in history as a day many “lost their innocence.” No one could deny a brutal murder took place, by the hands of law enforcement, against a human being who was no threat to anyone when this occurred.

What came to light for others is what people of color, especially Black people, have known for centuries. Plessy vs. Ferguson — separate but equal — and the Brown vs. Board of Education overturning Plessy decisions, didn’t tell the true story of the viciousness and prevalence of institutionalized racism in our nation.

The Hospital Clinical Staffing Committees and Disclosure Act (“staffing law”) calls for the formation of a Staffing Committee at every hospital. This body is key to reaching the goals of setting and enforcing safe staffing standards in all facilities throughout the state.

Every hospital must form a Staffing Committee that includes representatives of RNs and other frontline unit staff (LPNs, aides, other direct care and assistive personnel) and management (DON, finance, managers). Half the committee must consist of frontline staff.

On June 18, in a victory for all nurses and healthcare workers in New York, groundbreaking staffing legislation for hospitals and nursing homes became law.

The legislation, a pair of landmark laws—the Hospital Clinical Staffing Committees and Disclosure Act (A108B/S1168A) and the Standard Minimum Nursing Home Staffing Levels Act (A7119/S6346) — is a result of your steadfast advocacy for over a decade which continued, unwavering, as you faced unprecedented crisis conditions, putting yourself at risk on the frontlines while safeguarding the lives of others.