• Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Log In
  • Sign Up
  • Data Privacy
  • Send a Release
Cision PR Newswire: news distribution, targeting and monitoring home
  • News
  • Products
    • Overview
    • Distribution by PR Newswire
    • Cision Communications Cloud®
    • Cision IR
    • All Products
  • Contact
    • General Inquiries
    • Request a Demo
    • Editorial Bureaus
    • Partnerships
    • Media Inquiries
    • Worldwide Offices

 

When typing in this field, a list of search results will appear and be automatically updated as you type.

Searching for your content...

No results found. Please change your search terms and try again.
  • News in Focus
      • Browse News Releases

      • All News Releases
      • All Public Company
      • English-only
      • News Releases Overview

      • Multimedia Gallery

      • All Multimedia
      • All Photos
      • All Videos
      • Multimedia Gallery Overview

      • Trending Topics

      • All Trending Topics
  • Business & Money
      • Auto & Transportation

      • All Automotive & Transportation
      • Aerospace, Defense
      • Air Freight
      • Airlines & Aviation
      • Automotive
      • Maritime & Shipbuilding
      • Railroads and Intermodal Transportation
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Transportation, Trucking & Railroad
      • Travel
      • Trucking and Road Transportation
      • Auto & Transportation Overview

      • View All Auto & Transportation

      • Business Technology

      • All Business Technology
      • Blockchain
      • Broadcast Tech
      • Computer & Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Components
      • Electronic Design Automation
      • Financial Technology
      • High Tech Security
      • Internet Technology
      • Nanotechnology
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Semiconductors
      • Business Technology Overview

      • View All Business Technology

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • All Entertain­ment & Media
      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • Entertain­ment & Media Overview

      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Financial Services & Investing

      • All Financial Services & Investing
      • Accounting News & Issues
      • Acquisitions, Mergers and Takeovers
      • Banking & Financial Services
      • Bankruptcy
      • Bond & Stock Ratings
      • Conference Call Announcements
      • Contracts
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Dividends
      • Earnings
      • Earnings Forecasts & Projections
      • Financing Agreements
      • Insurance
      • Investments Opinions
      • Joint Ventures
      • Mutual Funds
      • Private Placement
      • Real Estate
      • Restructuring & Recapitalization
      • Sales Reports
      • Shareholder Activism
      • Shareholder Meetings
      • Stock Offering
      • Stock Split
      • Venture Capital
      • Financial Services & Investing Overview

      • View All Financial Services & Investing

      • General Business

      • All General Business
      • Awards
      • Commercial Real Estate
      • Corporate Expansion
      • Earnings
      • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
      • Human Resource & Workforce Management
      • Licensing
      • New Products & Services
      • Obituaries
      • Outsourcing Businesses
      • Overseas Real Estate (non-US)
      • Personnel Announcements
      • Real Estate Transactions
      • Residential Real Estate
      • Small Business Services
      • Socially Responsible Investing
      • Surveys, Polls and Research
      • Trade Show News
      • General Business Overview

      • View All General Business

  • Science & Tech
      • Consumer Technology

      • All Consumer Technology
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Blockchain
      • Cloud Computing/Internet of Things
      • Computer Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Consumer Electronics
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Gaming
      • Financial Technology
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Multimedia & Internet
      • Peripherals
      • Social Media
      • STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Math)
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Wireless Communications
      • Consumer Technology Overview

      • View All Consumer Technology

      • Energy & Natural Resources

      • All Energy
      • Alternative Energies
      • Chemical
      • Electrical Utilities
      • Gas
      • General Manufacturing
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Oil & Energy
      • Oil and Gas Discoveries
      • Utilities
      • Water Utilities
      • Energy & Natural Resources Overview

      • View All Energy & Natural Resources

      • Environ­ment

      • All Environ­ment
      • Conservation & Recycling
      • Environmental Issues
      • Environmental Policy
      • Environmental Products & Services
      • Green Technology
      • Natural Disasters
      • Environ­ment Overview

      • View All Environ­ment

      • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • All Heavy Industry & Manufacturing
      • Aerospace & Defense
      • Agriculture
      • Chemical
      • Construction & Building
      • General Manufacturing
      • HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning)
      • Machinery
      • Machine Tools, Metalworking and Metallurgy
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Paper, Forest Products & Containers
      • Precious Metals
      • Textiles
      • Tobacco
      • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing Overview

      • View All Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • Telecomm­unications

      • All Telecomm­unications
      • Carriers and Services
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Telecommunications Equipment
      • Telecommunications Industry
      • VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
      • Wireless Communications
      • Telecomm­unications Overview

      • View All Telecomm­unications

  • Lifestyle & Health
      • Consumer Products & Retail

      • All Consumer Products & Retail
      • Animals & Pets
      • Beers, Wines and Spirits
      • Beverages
      • Bridal Services
      • Cannabis
      • Cosmetics and Personal Care
      • Fashion
      • Food & Beverages
      • Furniture and Furnishings
      • Home Improvement
      • Household, Consumer & Cosmetics
      • Household Products
      • Jewelry
      • Non-Alcoholic Beverages
      • Office Products
      • Organic Food
      • Product Recalls
      • Restaurants
      • Retail
      • Supermarkets
      • Toys
      • Consumer Products & Retail Overview

      • View All Consumer Products & Retail

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • All Entertain­ment & Media
      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • Entertain­ment & Media Overview

      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Health

      • All Health
      • Biometrics
      • Biotechnology
      • Clinical Trials & Medical Discoveries
      • Dentistry
      • FDA Approval
      • Fitness/Wellness
      • Health Care & Hospitals
      • Health Insurance
      • Infection Control
      • International Medical Approval
      • Medical Equipment
      • Medical Pharmaceuticals
      • Mental Health
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Supplementary Medicine
      • Health Overview

      • View All Health

      • Sports

      • All Sports
      • General Sports
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Sporting Events
      • Sports Equipment & Accessories
      • Sports Overview

      • View All Sports

      • Travel

      • All Travel
      • Amusement Parks and Tourist Attractions
      • Gambling & Casinos
      • Hotels and Resorts
      • Leisure & Tourism
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Passenger Aviation
      • Travel Industry
      • Travel Overview

      • View All Travel

  • Policy & Public Interest
      • Policy & Public Interest

      • All Policy & Public Interest
      • Advocacy Group Opinion
      • Animal Welfare
      • Congressional & Presidential Campaigns
      • Corporate Social Responsibility
      • Domestic Policy
      • Economic News, Trends, Analysis
      • Education
      • Environmental
      • European Government
      • FDA Approval
      • Federal and State Legislation
      • Federal Executive Branch & Agency
      • Foreign Policy & International Affairs
      • Homeland Security
      • Labor & Union
      • Legal Issues
      • Natural Disasters
      • Not For Profit
      • Patent Law
      • Public Safety
      • Trade Policy
      • U.S. State Policy
      • Policy & Public Interest Overview

      • View All Policy & Public Interest

  • People & Culture
      • People & Culture

      • All People & Culture
      • Aboriginal, First Nations & Native American
      • African American
      • Asian American
      • Children
      • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
      • Hispanic
      • Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual
      • Men's Interest
      • People with Disabilities
      • Religion
      • Senior Citizens
      • Veterans
      • Women
      • People & Culture Overview

      • View All People & Culture

      • In-Language News

      • español
      • português
      • Česko
      • Danmark
      • Deutschland
      • España
      • France
      • Italia
      • Nederland
      • Norge
      • Polska
      • Portugal
      • Россия
      • Slovensko
      • Suomi
      • Sverige
  • Overview
  • Distribution by PR Newswire
  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Cision IR
  • All Products
  • General Inquiries
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • Media Inquiries
  • Worldwide Offices
  • PR Newswire: news distribution, targeting and monitoring
  • Send a Release
    • ALL CONTACT INFO
    • Contact Us

      888-776-0942
      from 8 AM - 10 PM ET

  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • News in Focus
    • Browse All News
    • Multimedia Gallery
    • Trending Topics
  • Business & Money
    • Auto & Transportation
    • Business Technology
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Financial Services & Investing
    • General Business
  • Science & Tech
    • Consumer Technology
    • Energy & Natural Resources
    • Environ­ment
    • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing
    • Telecomm­unications
  • Lifestyle & Health
    • Consumer Products & Retail
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Health
    • Sports
    • Travel
  • Policy & Public Interest
  • People & Culture
    • People & Culture
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • Overview
  • Distribution by PR Newswire
  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Cision IR
  • All Products
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • General Inquiries
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • Media Inquiries
  • Worldwide Offices
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • RSS
  • GDPR

MNA: Brigham and Women's Hospital Tells Nurses to Care for Patients Despite Living with COVID-19 Positive Family Members

During resurgent pandemic, MNA nurses outraged at BWH measures that are less safe than CDC and DPH guidelines

Massachusetts Nurse Association (PRNewsFoto/Massachusetts Nurses Association) (PRNewsfoto/Massachusetts Nurses Association)

News provided by

Massachusetts Nurses Association

Nov 24, 2020, 11:43 ET

Share this article

Share this article


BOSTON, Nov. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Registered nurses who care for patients at Brigham and Women's Hospital are being told to report to work even though family members who live with them have tested positive for COVID-19.

Brigham nurses, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, are calling on the hospital to effectively implement a change in policy to reflect the recognized science of COVID-19 – including extensive asymptomatic spread – and implement the stronger safety standards employed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Public Health.

In recent weeks, nurses in multiple units at Brigham and Women's Hospital, including labor and delivery and the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), have learned that immediate family members such as a spouse or child have been exposed to COVID-19 and tested positive. Those nurses then called occupational health and/or a manager at the hospital and were told they should report for their next shift in direct patient care roles. This was extremely alarming to the nurses, who feared they could also have COVID-19, or could develop it through prolonged exposure to their family members, and spread it to patients or other staff, who could then spread the virus further in the hospital and community.

"We have no closer contacts than our immediate family members," said Trish Powers, OR/Trauma RN and Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee. "It makes zero sense to send exposed nurses back into the hospital to care for patients. Nurses can have COVID-19 without symptoms and spread it to their patients or colleagues and back out into the community."

CDC guidelines say healthcare professionals who have had "prolonged close contact" with a COVID-19 positive patient, visitor, or other healthcare professional while not wearing PPE should not work for 14 days following exposure. There is a staffing shortage exception in the CDC guidelines, but the Brigham is not currently facing staff shortages.

The Brigham's inconsistent safety practices during the pandemic have made it even more risky to send nurses exposed to COVID-19 positive family members immediately back to the bedside. Brigham nurses have extensively documented the hospital's failure to adhere to social distancing standards.

Crowded shuttles and elevators have not been addressed. The Boston Globe has reported a lack of social distancing in break rooms and other areas may have led to the COVID-19 cluster at the Brigham this fall. The hospital has refused to reinstate its previous visitor policy that helped contain the spread, and instead is allowing excessive numbers of visitors throughout the hospital – including permitting support people in labor and delivery who have not been tested for COVID-19.

The Brigham's actions around COVID-19 exposure stand in contrast to much stronger standards from CDC, DPH and other employers and industries.

  • The Commonwealth of Massachusetts "COVID-19 Prevention and Treatment" guidance says "People can spread COVID19 up to 48 hours before they have symptoms" and "If you have been exposed to possible COVID-19 contact, you will be directed to quarantine by self-monitoring at home in case you get sick."
  • Dr. Mark Siedner of Mass. General Hospital – like BWH also part of Mass General Brigham – told CBS Boston last month that NFL players exposed to COVID-19 positive people should quarantine for 14 days.
  • Boston Public Health Commission guidance for residential treatment facilities, detox centers, sober houses, group homes, etc.: "Staff with a close contact or household member who is ill with COVID-19 symptoms or has been confirmed as a case should be excluded from the building for a minimum of 2 weeks."
  • Boston Public Health Commission guidance for multi-family buildings such as apartments: "Staff with a close contact or household member who is ill with COVID-19 symptoms or has been confirmed as a case should be excluded from the building for a minimum of 2 weeks."
  • The Mayor of Gloucester and its public health director issued a public statement on COVID-19 protocols last week that directly addressed contact with positive family members, saying, "If you live with someone who is isolating and has tested positive for COVID-19, your last day of quarantine will be 14 days from when the person with COVID-19 first began their isolation period. If you have close contact with a member of your household who has COVID-19 after they began their isolation, you will have to restart your 14 day quarantine."
  • Harvard University – a teaching affiliate of Brigham and Women's Hospital – tells its students that if they receive a notice they have been exposed to someone positive for COVID-19 "it's incredibly important to minimize your movement and exposure to others."
  • Many Massachusetts first responders have been told to quarantine after exposure to people found to be positive with COVID-19, including MBTA Police, Worcester firefighters, Chicopee police, and Boston EMS.
  • In other areas of society, it is standard for people exposed to COVID-19 positive people to be quarantined:
    • Fox News staff were quarantined after being on a plane with someone who tested positive.
    • In Salem, a dozen students were asked to quarantine last month after being exposed to another student who tested positive for COVID-19.
    • Two Framingham baseball teams, parents and spectators were all expected to quarantine after attending a game last month in which a coach tested positive. The Framingham Board of Health recommended players "quarantine for 14 days due to their exposure to a confirmed case from the date of their last contact."
    • In September, 20 public school students in Auburn, MA were quarantined after a bus monitor tested positive.
    • Stop and Shop – a company with a location across from Brigham and Women's Hospital – has quarantined workers on multiple occasions because they have been exposed to someone who tested positive.

MassNurses.org │ Facebook.com/MassNurses │ Twitter.com/MassNurses │ Instagram.com/MassNurses 

____________________________________________

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association

Related Links

http://www.massnurses.org

Modal title

Also from this source

Massachusetts Nurses Association Endorses Maura Healey for...

Massachusetts Nurses Association Endorses Maura Healey for...


Brigham and Women's Hospital Nurses Vote to Ratify Strong MNA...

Brigham and Women's Hospital Nurses Vote to Ratify Strong MNA...

Explore

More news releases in similar topics

  • Health Care & Hospitals
  • Infection Control
  • Labor & Union
  • Advocacy Group Opinion
  • Women

Contact Cision

  • Cision Distribution 888-776-0942
    from 8 AM - 9 PM ET

  • Chat with an Expert
  • General Inquiries
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • Media Inquiries
  • Worldwide Offices

Products

  • Cision Communication Cloud®
  • For Marketers
  • For Public Relations
  • For IR & Compliance
  • For Agency
  • For Small Business
  • All Products

About

  • About PR Newswire
  • About Cision
  • Become a Publishing Partner
  • Become a Channel Partner
  • Careers
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Asia
  • Brazil
  • Canada
  • Czech
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Israel
  • Italy
  • Mexico
  • Middle East
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Poland
  • Portugal
  • Russia
  • Slovakia
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • United Kingdom

My Services

  • All New Releases
  • Online Member Center
  • ProfNet

Contact Cision

Products

About

My Services
  • All News Releases
  • Online Member Center
  • ProfNet
Cision Distribution Helpline
888-776-0942
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Information Security Policy
  • Site Map
  • RSS
  • Cookie Settings
Copyright © 2022 Cision US Inc.