Eliza Bates | press@nysna.org | 646-285-8491
Montefiore Hutchinson Nurses Sound Alarm on Pediatric Patient Safety
NYSNA members are speaking out after Montefiore began transferring children to the Hutchinson campus without providing adequate training in pediatric care for staff or child-safe equipment
On Thursday, May 23, at 7 PM nurses share their concerns about safe patient care for Bronx children at the Community Board 11 meeting in the Bronx
BRONX, NY – Registered nurses at Montefiore’s Hutchinson campus in the Bronx are raising concerns about child safety after Montefiore began transferring pediatric patients that require outpatient surgery from the Children's Hospital at Montefiore to Hutchinson ambulatory surgery center without providing adequate training for caregivers who previously treated exclusively adult patients, and without providing the pediatric equipment needed to keep children safe. Because pediatric care and surgery is highly specialized, the skills needed to safely care for children are not immediately transferable from adult surgical services without adequate training.
“Montefiore started introducing pediatric patients before nurses were fully oriented and the orientation offered is not sufficient or appropriate to train for a whole new specialty,” said Rebecca Krug, RN, a nurse at Montefiore Hutch campus, “As a nurse, but also as a mother of two young children, I want to make sure that pediatric patients have access to safe, quality care. That’s why nurses are fighting for quality training, so we can deliver quality care to all our patients.”
Montefiore management has failed to listen to nurses’ safety concerns and, earlier this month, started transferring children to Hutchinson after providing only three days of training in pediatric care. For patient safety, NYSNA’s Montefiore contract stipulates that nurses who do not specialize in pediatrics require a 12-week training in order to care for children. In April, nurses filed a grievance against Montefiore for failing to provide that training and they continue to demand that Montefiore prioritize children's safety.
On Thursday, May 23 at 7 PM, NYSNA nurses will speak out at a Bronx Community Board 11 hearing. The hearing will take place at Einstein College of Medicine’s Lubin Hall, at Newport and Van Nest Avenues in the Bronx.
Nurses are asking for the community to join them in calling on Montefiore to prioritize pediatric patient safety and to ensure that every sick child has a trained nurse at their bedside.
“Montefiore is shuffling patients to our facility without the appropriate training, tools, or resources. We are concerned not only for the safety of pediatric patients during surgery, but about the potential security and psychological impacts of having adults and children in the same space as they recover,” said Jacqui Anom, RN, a nurse at Montefiore Hutch campus."
“I’ve been a nurse for 38 years and have worked in multiple specialties caring for patients with different needs. I know what it takes to train to care for patient with different needs and what Montefiore is offering is outrageously inadequate.” said Lisa Welch-Gairey, RN, a nurse at Montefiore Hutch campus, “When I transferred to Labor and Delivery from the Intensive Care Unit, I got 3 months of training. When I transferred to ambulatory surgery, I got another 3 months, so to expect us to be prepared after 3 classes is not fair for both nurses and patients.”
