TG committed to care and keeping it affordable

Nurses are an important and valued part of our health care system. We all rely on them to take care of us when we spend time inside our hospitals. Nursing is a noble and compassionate profession that includes caring for the most vulnerable, even if it means exposing yourself to the risk of injury or infection.

There’s no doubt that a nurse’s work is difficult. At MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital, we have more than 700 employees in nursing. They are on the front lines of caring for our patients.

A nursing career has many rewards, both personal and financial. Pay and benefits for nurses at Tacoma General with an associate degree ranges from $84,000 to $134,000 annually. The average nurse at Tacoma General earns $108,000 in salary and benefits combined. These are excellent, family wage jobs that support our community.

Most nurses in our region, including those at Tacoma General, belong to a union. The Washington State Nurses Association represents the nurses at Tacoma General and, together, we are negotiating a new, three-year contract.

Tacoma General has come to the bargaining table committed to offering reasonable compensation consistent with other nursing contracts. We know it’s important to remain competitive in compensating these important workers.

In addition to being paid well, nurses should be able to work in an environment that allows them to do what they do best. Both WSNA and Tacoma General agree that nurses need to receive regular rest breaks to provide great care in our facilities. As part of our contract negotiations, we are discussing the long-used “break buddy” system. This is the most common approach to providing nursing breaks in hospitals across the country and is consistent with state and federal laws.

Recently, an arbitrator ruled that the system was not sufficient to relieve nurses for breaks. We disagree. The break buddy system is the most flexible, efficient and cost-effective solution. However, we do understand that several factors in the last couple of years have strained this proven system.

Staffing levels at the hospital have been tight because of higher-than-normal turnover paired with a national shortage of nurses that has made it difficult to fill open positions. Additionally, more patients are coming to us for care, resulting in a 13.5 percent increase in hospital stays. These factors meant that it has been more challenging for nurses to get their breaks.

Although nurses are paid extra for a missed break, they want and should be able to take as many of their legally mandated rest breaks as possible. We are committed to improving the existing break buddy system and making sure that our nurses have the opportunity to step away from the bedside. And we are asking WSNA to work with us to ensure that our nurses get the rest they need.

WSNA’s proposed alternative could add as many as 120 nurses – at a cost of $13 million – just to cover breaks at the hospital. This proposal comes at a time when we are working hard to reduce the cost of health care for our communities.

While our operating margin is healthy, those funds are dedicated to reducing the cost of care for our patients and improving our facilities. MultiCare Health System, of which Tacoma General is a part, reinvests all of the money left after paying our bills, which includes salaries for our nurses, into improving community health services.

That reinvestment allowed for such improvements as the new Tacoma General Emergency Department and the Tacoma General Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which cares for the region’s most fragile babies. And as a community-owned organization, we must use our resources to ensure local, affordable health care remains available for future generations.

This story was originally published March 3, 2016 at 5:47 AM with the headline "TG committed to care and keeping it affordable."