Kissimmee nurses to hold informational picket for patient safety

Nurses at HCA Florida Osceola Hospital in Kissimmee, Fla., will hold an informational picket on Thursday, Aug. 15, to protest the administration's refusal to address RNs' deep concerns about patient care and safe staffing. Nurses at Osceola are represented by National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU) in ongoing contract negotiations with HCA management that began in March.

"We've been at the bargaining table for months fighting for what we need to take care of our patients," said Elisabeth Mathieu, RN in the emergency department at Osceola Hospital. "We need HCA to hear us, so we're holding this informational picket to let the public know what we're demanding in our contract when it comes to patient care and, especially, safe staffing."

• Who: Registered nurses at HCA Florida Osceola Hospital
• What: Informational picket for patient safety and a fair contract
• When: Thursday, Aug. 15, 7:30 to 9 a.m.
• Where: Osceola Hospital, 700 W. Oak St., Kissimmee, Fla.

Osceola Hospital nurses have been in negotiations since March for a new contract without satisfactory movement on key issues. The RNs urge management to agree to a contract that:

• Provides safe staffing in every unit on every shift to ensure high-quality patient care.
• Guarantees that nurses' patients are cared for while they take meal and rest breaks.
• Empowers nurse recruitment and retention.

"Safe staffing is the best way to improve patient care," said Marissa Lee, RN in the labor and delivery unit. "And the best way to improve safe staffing is to improve working conditions at our hospital because that's what makes our hospital a place nurses and providers want to come to work and want to stay to work."

Nurses notified their employer on Aug. 2 that they would hold an informational picket. They previously rallied in June. Their most recent contract, ratified in 2021, expired on July 1 after being extended from a May 31 expiration date. NNOC/NNU represents more than 650 nurses at HCA Florida Osceola Hospital.

National Nurses Organizing Committee is an affiliate of National Nurses United, the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with nearly 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates also include California Nurses Association, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.