Registered nurses working at Medstar Washington Hospital Center, members of National Nurses United, took action Friday to advocate for the personal protective equipment (PPE) they need to safely treat patients. Nurses at 139 hospitals in 13 states representing more than 95,540 nurses will be holding workplace actions on Friday—International Workers Day, also known as “May Day”— calling for optimal COVID-19 protections.
Nurses say their demand for optimal PPE is underscored by the fact that more than 60 nurses across the country have died of COVID-19, although due to lack of testing, they say the number is surely higher.
“Nurses signed up to care for their patients. They did not sign up to sacrifice their lives on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said NNU Executive Director Bonnie Castillo, RN. “On this day that celebrates the labor movement and working people, union nurses are standing up to demand the protections they need now!”
- report/photos courtesy Korey Hartwich, NNU
Nurses say their demand for optimal PPE is underscored by the fact that more than 60 nurses across the country have died of COVID-19, although due to lack of testing, they say the number is surely higher.
“Nurses signed up to care for their patients. They did not sign up to sacrifice their lives on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said NNU Executive Director Bonnie Castillo, RN. “On this day that celebrates the labor movement and working people, union nurses are standing up to demand the protections they need now!”
- report/photos courtesy Korey Hartwich, NNU