Framingham Union Hospital nurses today announced they filed state and federal complaints against Tenet Healthcare.
They say deficiencies in staffing, hospital policies, allocation of technology and punitive management practices have created “horrific conditions” for staff and “a growing and dire crisis in the safety of care for patients.” Framingham Union nurses, who are members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, held a media briefing about the complaints outside the hospital on Monday morning.
“We’re out here today not by choice, but by necessity, to sound the alarm for the public and for those agencies charged with monitoring and regulating the care provided by our hospitals,” said Katie Murphy, RN, president of the MNA and a Framingham resident.
Patients are often left waiting for care that, in some cases, the hospital can’t even provide, according to patient review nurse Belcy Nzeannocie-Raina.
“On Aug. 30, there were 39 patients in the emergency department,” she said. “Twenty-six of these people were boarders waiting for what would turn out to be five available beds in the hospital.”
She said those clusters of patients occur due to staffing shortages in the patient review and case management departments at Framingham Union. The case managers are now expected to see 70 cases in one day, which she said is unrealistic.
“Most safety standards have been mitigated just so people can get patients what they need in Tenet’s time frame with minimal staffing and resources. I’m worried about what is happening for our patients as a result,” said Adam Crawford, who works in the hospital’s telemetry unit, which serves patients requiring continuous cardiac and vital sign monitoring.
The MNA has filed multiple rounds of complaints against the for-profit, Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare Corporation over conditions at other hospitals, including St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester. On March 6 this year, the Joint Commission validated nurses’ complaints against Tenant after an investigation at St. Vincent’s that found the hospital to be “non-compliant with applicable patient care conditions for Medicaid and Medicare Services Conditions.”
The Framingham Union Hospital nurses’ complaints were filed with the state’s Department of Public Health; the Joint Commission, which accredits acute care hospitals; and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The Department of Public Health told GBH News that they have yet to receive the MNA complaint. Once they do, they said trained staff will review the information provided and determine if on-site investigation is necessary. If areas of non-compliance are identified, the facility must file a plan of corrective action to ensure patient safety and quality of care.
GBH News reached out to Tenet for comment, but did not receive a response.
“It takes great courage to do what these nurses are doing are doing to protect their patients,” said nurse Mary Sue Howlett, an MNA staff member and a clinical educator. “We only hope our DPH and others can step up and show the same courage by supporting these nurses and holding this corporation accountable for protecting those we are all here to serve.”
