NEW: RI Hospital Nurses Ratify New Three Year Contract with Lifespan

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

GoLocalProv News Team

RI Hospital nurses, technicians have agreed to a new 3 year contract with Lifespan.

Nurses and technologists at Rhode Island Hospital have ratified a new three year contract with Lifespan.

Members of the United Nurses and Allied Professionals (UNAP) Local 5098, which represents nearly 2,300 nurses, technologists, therapists and allied health professionals at Rhode Island Hospital, made the announcement Tuesday.

UNAP Statement

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"This contract protects the wages and benefits of dedicated front-line caregivers at a time when health professionals are constantly asked to do more with less. I'm grateful to our members who have lived and worked under great pressure and uncertainty since contract negotiations began. Their professionalism has been exceptional and they deserve an agreement that respects the difficult work that they do," said Helene Macedo, RN, UNAP Local 5098 president.

UNAP's previous contract with the hospital expired on June 30th. Members began working without a contract August 1st, and authorized the union's executive board to issue a 10-day strike notice, if an equitable agreement could not be reached.

Lifespan Statement

Lifespan issued the following statement Tuesday afternoon:

"Rhode Island Hospital was pleased to learn that the United Nurses and Allied Professionals (UNAP) ratified a new three-year labor agreement with Rhode Island Hospital. We believe the contract provides our nurses and technical professionals with a fair wage and benefits package.

The hospital is committed to demonstrating the high value we place on all of our employees. We look forward to working closely with UNAP and its members as we continue to build upon the world-class care we provide our patients."

Updated 2:32 PM

Related Slideshow: RI Hospitals, Surgeons with Highest Complication Rates During Routine Medicare Procedures

ProPublica used Medicare data from 2009-2013 to identify cases where a patient died in the hospital or had to be readmitted within 30 days for a problem related to one of the procedures below. ProPublica calculated complication rates for surgeons, and accounted for differences in patient health, age and hospital quality. These rates are calculated using data from Medicare records, which do not include patients with private insurance or in another program like Medicaid. (Note: Some surgeons are listed more than once. A surgeon’s rate spans all hospitals at which he or she operates and is not unique to a given hospital).

The adjusted complication rate is measured by "the rate of complications, adjusting for several variables, including performance of the hospital and the health and age of surgeon's patients."

Definitions (Source: Pro Publica):

Knee replacement - Replace diseased knee joint with an artificial knee.

Hip replacement - Replace diseased hip joint with an artificial hip joint.

Lumbar Spinal Fusion, Posterior Technique - The fusing of two or more vertebrae in the lower back, performed on the back portion of the spine.

Lumbar Spinal Fusion, Anterior Techique - The fusing of two or more vertebrae in the lower back, performed on the front portion of the spine.

Gallbladder Removal, Laparoscopic - Minimally invasive gallbladder removal. This is performed most commonly when gallstones are blocking the flow of bile.

Prostate Removal - The removal of the entire prostate gland via the open or laparoscopic or robotic method. Usually performed to treat prostate cancer.

Prostate Resection - The resection and removal of a portion of the prostate through the urethra. This is most commonly done because of an enlarged prostate that may be restricting the flow of urine.