On Tuesday October 10, 2023 Virginia Mason Hospital Nurses Picketed For Better Facility Security And Safety
The nursing staff at Seattle's Virginia Mason Medical Center picketed outside the downtown Seattle hospital on Tuesday October 10, 2023 for better facility safety and security. Virginia Mason nurses hoped by picketing that they might bring more attention to worsening workplace violence incidents at the downtown Seattle hospital.
The Virginia Mason Medical Center nurses in Seattle were not on strike on Tuesday October 10, 2023. The Virginia Mason Medical Center nursing staff, their colleagues, their friends, and their family members, were exercising their first amendment constitutional right to assemble and express their concerns to The Virginia Mason Medical Center management.
One member of the Virginia Mason Medical Center nursing staff, Michael Salters, who has been a critical care nurse at Virginia Mason since 2018, said that some of the nurses there have even been attacked, including one nurse who was stabbed in the face with a butter knife, and another nurse who was nearly hit in the head with a claw hammer.
Among the suggested solutions that Virginia Mason Medical Center nurses have been asking the hospital to implement include: hospital visitor register at a front desk; limiting the number of publicly accessible entrances; metal detectors, and more responsive security staff. Since the Tuesday October 10, 2023 picketing event outside Virginia Mason Medical Center, it has been noticeable that fewer entrances are available for general public access. One example, one that may inconvenience Virginia Mason Medical Center surgery center patients is that the surgery center entrance at 1000 Spring Street is now locked, even during business hours. This, unfortunately means that patients who arrive for surgery must enter Virginia Mason Medical Center through its main entrance on Seneca Street and then navigate through the maze like hospital hallways and up to the Surgery Center entrance on the 6th floor of the Central Pavilion. Thankfully, however, surgery patients leaving the Virginia Mason Medical Center surgery center can still exit for vehicle pickup at the 1000 Spring Street circular driveway.
Disclaimer: This Day Surgery Companion Service journal article is not medical advice. Please converse with your physician regarding medical advice, medical consultation, and for answers to any medical questions.
