NYSNA announces safe staffing standards as part of breakthrough new contract with the City of New York and NYC Health + Hospitals
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 17, 2019
Contact: Richard Bamberger, rbamberger@kivvit.com, 917.662.8370
New York, NY – Public sector NYSNA nurses at NYC Health + Hospitals and NY City Mayoral Agencies announce safe staffing standards as part of a breakthrough new contract with the City and the Health + Hospitals system. NYSNA represents more than 9,500 registered nurses at the public hospitals and city agencies.
The ratios spelled out in the contract are as follows:
- Med/Surg - 1:6
- Critical Care Units – 1:2
- Stepdown/Telemetry – 1:4
- CCU Stepdown – 1:4
- Maternal/Child – 1:3
- Behavior Health – 1:7
- Rehab – 1:7
- Labor and Delivery – 1:2
- Emergency Department, Trauma – 1:1
- Emergency Department, Critical Care – 1:2
- Emergency Department, non-critical high resource- 1:5
- Emergency Department, non-critical low resource- 1:8
- Operating Room – 1:1
- Pediatrics – 1:6
The agreed upon staffing ratios will be implemented by a joint committee that will discuss the allocation of newly hired nurses and monitor compliance with the standards throughout the system.
“This is a great win for the nurses of NYC H+H and Mayorals, and the patients we care for. With this contract and its many important provisions, including nurse-to-patient ratios, we can raise the level of patient care. That’s the real winner. Thanks to my fellow NYSNA nurses for their extraordinarily hard work and devotion to the people of New York City. We greatly appreciate NYC H+H President and CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz for his dedication to the public's health. We are so proud to be a part of a system that stands for healthcare as a human right,” said Judith Cutchin, RN, NYSNA Board Member and President, NYSNA's NYC H+H/Mayoral Executive Council.
“Throughout this negotiation, Mayor de Blasio and his representatives in the contract negotiation demonstrated a fundamental commitment to the people of New York City. They listened intently to the nurses and others speak about conditions in the public hospitals and the contract reflects what they heard and learned. We thank the Mayor for the respect he showed us and for a contract that supports nurses and patients and the many communities we serve. The respect is very much mutual,” said Jill Furillo, RN, NYSNA Executive Director.
We thank New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York City Labor Commissioner Rene Campion for their partnership in these negotiations.
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The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) represents more than 42,000 members in New York State. We are New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses. For more information, please visit nysna.org.