WORCESTER—In the wake of allegations and formal complaints issued by nurses employed by Saint Vincent Hospital, the institution issued a statement indicating that the Massachusetts Department of Public Health found no staffing or care quality deficiencies.
“To have no negative findings for staffing and quality of care from the DPH is a reflection of the consistent collaboration and dedication to patient care that our staff and physicians demonstrate every day,” said Carolyn Jackson, chief executive officer of Saint Vincent Hospital and the Massachusetts market, in a statement. “We appreciate DPH’s thoughtful approach to the detailed survey that was completed. Our team was proud to show them the inner workings of our high-quality organization.”
The release was issued in swift response to the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), which, on March 6, said that The Joint Commission determined Saint Vincent Hospital failed to meet critical patient safety standards. The MNA announcement validated concerns consistently voiced by the hospital’s nurses, who have publicly argued that the unsafe care conditions jeopardize patients’ health. The Joint Commission’s investigation supported the hospital’s non-compliance with Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) Conditions.
Additionally, the DPH said that no conclusions can be drawn yet from the investigation, which began on Jan. 31, and the investigation is still ongoing. Therefore, Saint Vincent has also not been given a clean bill of health, according to David Schildmeier, director of public communications for the MNA.
On March 21, eight registered nurses represented by the MNA at St. Vincent Hospital filed a lawsuit in Worcester Superior Court. The lawsuit was filed against both the hospital and its owner, Tenet Healthcare, affirming they were fired for exercising their legal and professional obligation to report unsafe and illegal conditions that put patients in danger. This lawsuit was supported by the state’s healthcare whistleblower statute, which protects caregivers–nurses in this case–from being fired for publicly disclosing conduct or policy they deem violates standards of safe practice.
“I love who I work with, but this corporate system is not safe for our patients,” said Carla LeBlanc, a nurse at Saint Vincent for the last eight years, in an interview with the Worcester Guardian. “At what cost are we sitting around here? When will someone take action?”
After attempting to address the staffing crisis directly with Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Denise Kvapil, nurses spoke up publicly to say there was a lack of a meaningful response. “A lot of nurses were sending emails to the CNO to set up a time to talk about current issues,” continued LeBlanc. “We were down about 200 nurses and her response was that we should be happy that they hired four travel nurses. Four for the entire building.”
Nurses’ frustrations grew when last month a petition—signed by 88% of Saint Vincent’s nurses to demand resolution of the staffing shortages endangering patient lives—was reportedly dismissed by hospital leadership.
“When we attempted to deliver the petition,” said LeBlanc, “we were met with Tenet’s Director of Labor Relations Frances Henderson, who comes from Dallas, as well as a security guard. Frances was hanging outside the executive offices with the head of security and she told us that Denise Kvapil did not have time to meet with us. So, we asked what time we could meet with her, and they said she was going to be too busy all day.”
When asked why hospital leadership declined to meet with nurses delivering the petition, Tenet Healthcare responded, “We are guided by the current collective bargaining agreement that is in place with the MNA and it provides a means of addressing workplace issues in a responsible manner.”
Marlena Pellegrino, a veteran nurse at Saint Vincent’s with 37 years of service and co-chair of the local bargaining unit with the MNA, echoed LeBlanc’s sentiments when asked about what it’s like to work at the hospital.
“We cannot provide the care to our patients and it’s morally and legally wrong,” Pelligrino said. “Nurses are advocates, but not giving us the staff and the resources to take care of our patients is wrong, They clearly have the money since they paid $5 million a week for travel nurses while we were on strike. We’re asking them to work with us and address the staffing issue.”
Pellegrino criticized the hospital’s admissions practices, pointing out the dangers of accepting more patients than the staff can safely manage, but added that some are reluctant to speak out about their concerns.
“They’re willingly admitting and accepting patients that they know we cannot care for,” she stated. “We have a legally protected voice through our union. That protects our patients. They may think that all of this will cause us to be beaten down and become submissive, but rather it emboldens nurses. We are there to protect patients, not Tenet’s bottom line. It’s hard for us to report what’s going on and know what we say will be protected. Since this hospital has retaliated against nurses who have spoken up about unsafe staffing or refused unsafe assignments, the rest of us don’t know what to do next.”
During the investigation by the MA Department of Public Health, LeBlanc said that investigators were limited in their access to nurses while they were on site. She pointed to an instance in which the hospital steered the DPH away from a nurse who wanted to speak with them.
“In a real world,” LeBlanc said, “these investigators would come in and see the real picture of what’s really going on. But, that’s not what Tenet or Saint Vincent wanted.”
The St. Vincent’s nurses have continuously struggled to have their voices heard without consequence, according to LeBlanc.
Given the Joint Commission’s findings, Saint Vincent’s accreditation is at stake. The hospital must prove that it complies with proper standards of patient care to retain its accreditation. Tenet Healthcare told The Worcester Guardian, “Our vision is to consistently deliver high-quality patient-centered care in the right place at the right time. We continue to make investments in state-of-the-art technology, infrastructure, and staffing to provide high-quality care and expand services, including robotics and minimally invasive surgery.”
Matt Olszewski is a freelance content and news writer based in Boston, MA. In his free time, Matt enjoys running, hiking or skiing. Matt is currently finishing up the MPH degree program at Tufts University. He can be reached at mattoskier@gmail.com
