Washington state’s largest hospital and clinic unions call for the highest possible level of personal protection for caregivers during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Press release / Statement
The CDC has announced new interim recommendations on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) for situations where adequate supplies are unavailable.
WSNA is continuing our advocacy at the highest state level. We shared your stories and concerns on Saturday in two conference calls with officials from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH). We emphasized that some hospitals appear to not be following any standard protocols (CDC or WHO).
Statement
We are all working together under extraordinary circumstances to deal with this public health crisis in our state.
By Sally Watkins, PhD, RN, Executive Director
Press release / Statement
Leaders of several local and national unions issued a joint statement following the expected guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that will weaken protections for healthcare workers on the frontlines of fighting the coronavirus outbreak.
During this outbreak and every day, our students deserve the security of having a registered professional nurse on campus. Please join us in urging Washington state lawmakers to invest $1.7 million in new funding in the School Nurse Corps during the 2020 legislative session.
Press release / Statement
Nurses are on the frontlines of caring for patients, including those with COVID-19, and nurses represented by the Washington State Nurses Association have been caring for COVID-19 patients here in Washington state. Nurses feel a tremendous professional and ethical calling to care for every patient, and they are doing just that. We do need to ensure, though, that nurses and other health care workers are getting the needed protective equipment to do their jobs safely.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Senior citizens and people with underlying health conditions or compromised immune systems are at increased risk of severe disease.
Press release / Statement
The Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA), Washington State Medical Association (WSMA), and Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (WCAAP), representing more than 30,000 health professionals in the state, today issued a joint statement on the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Washington Paid Family & Medical Leave program became effective for Washington employees as of the beginning of this year. This state run program is designed to provide paid leave for employees for instances such as the illness or injury of an employee or employee’s family member or parental bonding time with a new child.
To activate nurses, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and Health Care Without Harm launched the Nurses Climate Challenge in May 2018, a national campaign to educate health professionals on climate and health. We are aiming to educate 50,000 health professionals by 2022.
Professional activism is the engagement of skilled and competent professionals utilizing strategic campaigning to achieve a goal. In nursing, it is nurses coming together to assess a need and identify the problem, design and implement a plan to address the issue, evaluate that plan, and repeat until the problem is solved.
As the investigation into 2019 novel coronavirus continues, the Washington State Department of Health is sharing important data points to help the public understand and track the progress and the work being done statewide.
If you have questions about what is happening in Washington state, how the virus is spread, what to do if you have symptoms, and need a phone number or website for additional information, read more.
The Future of Nursing report in 2010 gave states a set of goals to aim for as they developed their nursing workforce. Now, almost a decade later, how is the state of Washington measuring up?
Vaping products present a serious public health risk, and we commend the Governor for taking immediate action and a multi-pronged approach.
Attend an event in our Fall Leadership Series. Learn what you can do as a nurse to ensure successful implementation of new laws aimed at preventing workplace violence and protecting overtime and breaks for healthcare professionals.
Naloxone, a medication that can reverse an opioid overdose, will be available at pharmacies throughout Washington after Dr. Kathy Lofy, state health officer, signed a statewide standing order on Aug. 28.
The Department of Health and the Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission are working with the Washington Traffic Safety Commission to help spread the word about impaired driving from prescription and nonprescription drugs.
Presenteeism is when someone is physically at work, but not fully engaged or performing. As nurses, we have a lot going on both at work and outside of work, and these things (like our work environment and our own health and well-being) can affect our ability to be fully present at work.
Nurse delegation, unlike general delegation, is a specific process within nursing under the Washington Administrative Codes. It is focused on assigning care tasks to be performed by long-term care workers within certain settings, under the management of a registered nurse, called a nurse delegator.
The Washington Center for Nursing, the state’s nursing workforce center, has released several new reports that give insight into the changing nursing workforce in the state.
Incident reporting is a powerful source of information. When used effectively, it provides a factual description of an adverse event or near miss that supports learning, safety and improved care quality. Most health care entities utilize an electronic incident reporting system to identify opportunities for improvement.
What is incrementalism? Merriam-Webster defines it as a policy or advocacy of a policy of political or social change by degrees: gradualism. Why do we as nurses need to be aware of incrementalism? Because it’s a double-edged sword and it can cut deep.
