Tacoma-area RNs speak with legislators about what it’s really like to be a nurse

In person and through video-conferencing, more than 50 registered nurses spoke directly with Tacoma area legislators on September 21. The Tacoma event, held at the downtown Courtyard by Marriott hotel, was the first of a series of “When Nurses Speak, We Win” events planned in the run-up to the legislative session.

The idea is to put small groups of nurses together with legislators so that they can talk with lawmakers directly about what it is really like to be a nurse and the professional challenges nurses face every day. The Tacoma event was attended by State Sen. Steve Conway and Representatives Jake Fey, Laurie Jinkins, Steve Kirby and David Sawyer.

Grouped into small roundtable discussions, nurses and legislators talked about patient safety, adequate nurse staffing, mandatory overtime, patient transition from hospital to primary care clinics and information privacy. Not surprisingly, safe staffing levels came up in all of the discussions, including having both an appropriate number and appropriately trained staff on the floor to give patients excellent care. This is a top issue for WSNA and our members.

Additional events are being planned in other parts of the state. Stay tuned!