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Urge Your Member of Congress To Help Stop Mandatory Overtime!

Urge your Members of Congress to stop mandatory overtime by cosponsoring the Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act (H.R. 2122). The use of mandatory overtime is a growing problem which is having a negative impact on patient care and contributing to the nursing shortage. H.R. 2122 would put an end to this dangerous practice.

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Subject:

Dear [ Decision Maker ],

(Edit Letter Below)

I am writing to urge you to co-sponsor the Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act of 2007 (HR 2122), legislation which would address the current nurse staffing crisis in the U.S. by strictly limiting mandatory overtime for nurses, a dangerous practice that has contributed to a recent exodus of nurses from the nation's hospitals and a decline in safe, quality patient care.

To counter staffing insufficiencies that are already occurring, many health care facilities have increasingly imposed mandatory overtime. Typically, an employer may insist that a nurse work an extra shift (or more) or face dismissal for insubordination, as well as being reported to the state board of nursing for patient abandonment, a charge that could lead to a loss of license. At the same time, ethical nursing practice prohibits nurses from engaging in behavior they know could harm patients, thus leading to a dilemma for many nurses. An ANA survey of nearly 5,000 nurses across then nation revealed that more than 67 percent are working unplanned overtime every month.

The danger posed by fatigue is well understood.  A 2004 report commissioned by the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, and published in the July/August Health Affairs reconfirms the link between overtime and medical errors. This report, The Working Hours of Hospital Staff Nurses and Patient Safety, found that the risk of making an error greatly increased when nurses worked significant overtime.  The study found that the likelihood of making an error was three times higher when nurses worked shifts lasting more than 12.5 hours. Disturbingly, in nearly 40 percent of the shifts studied, nurses worked at least 12.5 consecutive hours.  While there are public safety protections in place prescribing the number of hours that individuals such as flight attendants and truck drivers can safely work, there are no such protections in nursing care.

HR 2122 would address this serious issue by strictly limiting mandatory overtime for nurses.  Specifically, the legislation would prohibit health care facilities that receive Medicare funding from requiring a Registered Nurse (RN) or Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) to work beyond an agreed to, predetermined, regularly scheduled shift.  The bill includes an exemption for declared local, state, or national emergencies, and the provisions would not apply to voluntary overtime.

To protect nurses who refuse overtime or who report information or cooperate with investigations regarding the use of overtime, the bill explicitly prohibits providers of services from penalizing, discriminating, or retaliating in any manner towards a nurse who, acting in good faith, avails themselves of these protections.

The use of mandatory overtime as a staffing tool is a growing problem across our nation, and this dangerous practice is having a negative impact on patient care, fostering medical errors, and driving nurses away from the bedside in a time of nursing shortage. In light of all these factors, I feel strongly that nurses must be given the opportunity to refuse overtime if they believe that they are unable to provide quality care.  I urge you to co-sponsor HR 2122

Thank you for your consideration of this important issue.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address]

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