News

Congratulations to the 2021 WSNA Recognition Award winners

The WSNA Awards Committee and the Professional Nursing and Health Care Council are proud to recognize and applaud these outstanding WSNA members with the 2021 WSNA Recognition Awards. Join us in celebrating this year's winners.

Happy National Nurses Month

Never before has the critical role of nurses been so clear. Never before have we been so proud of our profession. To the nurses who have carried us through, thank you and happy National Nurses Month.

Governor Jay Inslee proclaims May as Nurses Month in Washington state

“I encourage all people in our state to join me in honoring the nurses of Washington, especially recog­nizing the critical and live-saving role that regis­tered nurses have filled around our state, country, and world through the current coron­avirus pandemic.”

WSNA receives key to city of Federal Way

Gloria Brigham, WSNA director of nursing practice, received a key to the city of Federal Way on April 6 from Mayor Jim Ferrell. Brigham, representing WSNA, was one of seven people who accepted the awards on behalf of healthcare workers, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and grocery workers.

Chauvin conviction a landmark on the long road to eliminating systemic racism

WSNA applauds the guilty verdicts delivered against former police officer Derek Chauvin for the killing of George Floyd. The jury’s conclusion supports what we know to be true: that Black Americans, especially Black men, are too often victims of systemic racism in law enforcement in this country, and the consequences can be deadly.

Pearls for practice: accepting constructive criticism

The mention of the word “criticism” can instantly bring up feelings of dread, failure and defensiveness. However, criticism can be an important opportunity for growth, self-reflection and self-awareness for the professional nurse.

Kyla Arama delivers live-saving care in West Africa

As a volunteer for the nonprofit organization The Bridge of Hope, Kyla Arama has helped create a self-sustainable medical system in Sierra Leone, a developing country on the southwest coast of West Africa.

Biennial Report of Achievements

In 2019, the WSNA Board of Directors approved seven strategic priorities to focus the work of the association on areas of greatest importance to registered nurses and the organization. Within those priorities, WSNA staff developed specific goals and action steps and reported back to the Board on a regular basis.

Our strength comes from each other

During this year’s Washington State Nurses Convention, we hope nurses across Washington state will feel connected to and supported by others who have also felt the heavy weight of the pandemic on their shoulders.

PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center nurses rally for safe staffing

Nurses say PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center needs to do more to attract new nurses and retain the nurses it has after a brutal year on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. On April 10, hundreds of registered nurses and supporters rallied at the Vancouver Waterfront to call for safe nurse staffing at Southwest.

It’s National Public Health Week (or should it be year?)

The national theme for Public Health Week 2021 is “Building Bridges to Better Health,” a recognition that making communities safe and healthy is public health’s top priority and that COVID-19 has made that even more important.

Update on public health restructure legislation

Both the Washington State Senate and House of Representatives released their budget proposals in late March – and both provided significant new funding for Foundational Public Health Services.WSNA and the Washington State Medical Association issued a joint statement to budget leadership on March 28.

WSNA in Olympia: 2021 Legislative Session Week 10

This was the tenth week of the 2021 legislative session. Committee hearings continued this week ahead of the March 26 cutoff when policy bills must be voted out of committee in the opposite chamber.