Nurses may be disciplined if they stop certain duties

Excerpts:

Nurses in the province are being told they may face disciplinary action if they follow the suggestion of their  union and stop doing more non-nursing duties. But the union president said it’s not changing its job action campaign and it will defend any nurse punished by the employer.

Newfoundland and Labrador Nurses’ Union President Debbie Forward said the union received a letter from the director of the Newfoundland and Labrador Health Boards Association on Wednesday, stating that if nurses don’t perform the duties they may be in violation of their collective agreement, the Canadian Nurses' code of ethics, or the Public Sector Collective Bargaining Act.

“We believe these duties are not our duties,” she said.

She said medical facilities need more support staff, so nurses don’t have to take time away from patients to do the tasks.

On Oct. 1, the union said that it would withdraw certain non-nursing duties in reaction to a stalled collective bargaining process. On Oct. 3, they said they would also stop several other duties, including delivering and picking up meal trays, mandating nurses back to work, calling non-nursing staff back to work, and portering patients for routine procedures, effective today.

*Click here to read the full article: http://www.thetelegram.com/index.cfm?sid=179273&sc=79