2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 1
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Encourage Improved Emergency Preparedness
Whereas the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina has illustrated the inadequacies of Local, State, Regional and National disaster preparedness and
Whereas there are global concerns about emerging infectious diseases; and
Whereas Alaska has historically been subjected to natural disasters and epidemics; and
Whereas Alaska Nurses have been advocating for better disaster and emergency preparedness in Alaska; and
Whereas Alaska Constitution Article VII, Section 4 says “the legislature shall provide for the promotion and protection of public health.”
Therefore Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association encourage Alaskan RNs to be involved in disaster and diseases outbreak planning on the local, regional, state, and national level, and
That the Alaska Nurses Association advocate and lobby for funding for public health efforts including disaster and disease outbreak preparedness.
The Alaska Nurses Association continue to include disaster preparedness and infectious disease updates in their continuing education offerings, and promote and advance the need for nursing involvement in disaster preparedness and
That the Alaska Nurses Association will work with other organizations and government agencies to develop and improve existing disaster response systems including support and advocacy for a fully operational Alaska Nurse Alert System.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 2
__X__Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Work to Eliminate Mandatory Overtime
Whereas, the shortages of available and experienced nurses has increased the use of mandatory overtime in US health care facilities to solve staffing problems; and
Whereas this practice is pushing nurses beyond their capacity to work safely and to provide appropriate, quality care for their patients, is eroding job satisfaction and is further contributing to the recruitment and retention of nurses; and
Whereas studies have found that the likelihood of making an error is 3 times higher when nurses work shifts lasting 12.5 hours and longer; and
Whereas other studies have found that working more than 12 hours a day increase the injury hazard rate by 37% and working more than 60 hours a week increases the injury hazard rate by 23%; and
Whereas health care facilities in Alaska are using mandatory overtime on a regular basis to staff their facilities; and
Whereas, nurses are capable of determining their capacity to work beyond their predetermined, regular work schedules and expected to exercise their critical judgment in determining their ability to provide safe patient care.
Therefore Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association continue their support of Alaska HB 271 which would ban mandatory overtime for nurses.
Be it Further Resolved, that the Alaska Nurses Association educate nurses about the hazards of working overtime, both in terms of patient safety and nurse injuries.
Be it Further Resolved, that the Alaska Nurses Association continue to support nursing education in the state and the maintenance of good working conditions that lead to nurse retention and an adequate nurse workforce.
Be it Further Resolved, that the Alaska Nurses Association work collaboratively with employers to identify ways to staff their facilities in ways without the use of mandatory overtime for nurses.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 3
__X__Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Monitor Changes to the Alaska Nurse Practice Act
Whereas there is a need for periodic changes to the Alaska Nurse Practice Act to keep it current with the change health care environment; and
Whereas the Alaska Board of Nursing has identified areas in the statue that they feel need improvement; and
Whereas Alaska in many ways has a model Nurse Practice Act.
Therefore Be it Resolved that AaNA, through their Board of Directors, Practice Committee and Legislative Committee, will monitor proposals brought before the Alaska Legislature to modify the Nurse Practice Act and will take any action necessary to maintain a statute that promotes the practice of nursing in Alaska.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 4
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Promote Due Process and the Board of Nursing
Whereas, the license of a nurses is extremely valuable to their livelihood and professional status; and
Whereas, it is in the best interest of public safety to have a fair process for investigating complaints brought to the Board of Nursing, so that legitimate complaints may be heard while illegitimate complaints do not proceed to hearing; and
Whereas, it is in both the nurse’s and public’s best interest that complaints are investigated in a timely manner and the qualified professions are part of the investigative process; and
Whereas, nurses should have the right to representation in the Board’s investigative process and hearings; and
Whereas, nurses and their representatives should have the right to information regarding complaints filed against them to encourage a fair and legitimate investigation and hearing process.
Therefore Be It Resolved that AaNA will work on behalf of Alaskan nurses to reform the investigative and hearing process of the Board of Nursing in order to allow for a fair process for licensees as well as for the party bringing a complaint;
Be It Further Resolved that AaNA will work with other licensed professionals to further this issue through administrative, legislative and other appropriate methods of change;
Be It Further Resolved that AaNA will work to inform nurses about any changes made in order to help them better understand and respond to complaints filed against them to the Board of Nursing.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 5
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Promote Safe Nurse Staffing
Whereas, adequate staffing is critical to the delivery of quality patient care; and
Whereas, identifying and maintaining the appropriate number and mix of nursing staff is a problem experienced by nurses at every level and in all settings; and
Whereas, evaluation of any staffing system should include quality of work life outcomes as well as patient outcomes; and
Whereas, the specific needs of various patient populations should determine the appropriate clinical competencies required of the nurse practicing in that area; and
Whereas, all institutions should have documented competencies for nursing staff, including agency or traveling RN’s, for those activities and role responsibilities they have been authorized to perform; and
Whereas, when floating between units occurs, there should be a systematic plan in place for the cross-training of staff to ensure competency and the mentality that a “nurse-is-a-nurse-is-a-nurse” end and be replaced with staffing patterns that reflect the complexity of unit activities and nurse competencies levels that provide quality patient care; and
Whereas, organizational policy should reflect an organizational climate that values registered nurses and another employees as strategic assets and exhibit a true commitment to filling budgeted positions in a timely manner.
Therefore, let it be resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association will educate the nursing profession and the community at large about the principles for safe nursing staffing and support nurses in their efforts to advocate for safe staffing.
Be it Further Resolved, that the Alaska Nurses Association will support nurses in their efforts to work with management to develop organizational policies and practices that support safe staffing patterns.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 6
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Promote Safe Patient Handling and
Avoiding Injuries to Workers
Whereas nurses working in health care facilities perform patient handling tasks as part of their every day care-responsibilities; and
Whereas if the patients are not lifted and repositioned properly it places them at risk of skin breakdown and injuries from falls; and
Whereas there is no safe way to manually lift a physically dependent patient; and
Whereas patients are tending to weigh more while the average age of nurses increases; and
Whereas lift and transfer assistance devices exist but are not always readily available to nurses; and
Whereas studies have shown that humans cannot lift and turn heavy patients over extended time periods without incurring back, shoulder and neck injuries; and
Whereas nursing personnel are among the highest at risk for musculoskeletal disorders according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and worker’s compensation claims reveal that nursing personnel have the highest claim rates of any occupation or industry.
Therefore Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association will work with employers to adopt policies and procedures to control the risk of injury to patients and nurses associated with the lifting or moving a patient.
Be It Further Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association and the Alaska Nurses Foundation will work to acquire public funding for a no manual lifting demonstration project in Alaska.
Be It Further Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association educate nurses about the hazards of manually lifting patients and the availability and proper usage of patient transferring and reposition devices.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 7
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Support Nurses Working in the Public Sector
Whereas registered nurses (RNs) working in the public sector (school district, city, municipality, state and federal agencies) frequently work for salaries considerably below those or their counterparts receive in the private sector; and
Whereas RNs working in the public sector are frequently in employment settings that experience difficulty in recruitment, and/or require special skills and training; and
Whereas RNs working in the public sector comprise a very small segment of the public employees covered by their collective bargaining agents.
Therefore Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association support RNs in the public sector in their efforts to obtain salaries equivalent to private sector counterparts, and will work with agencies and elected officials to identify methods to recruit and retain qualified RNs for these positions.
Be It Further Resolved that AaNA requests the Alaska Department of Administration to review salary levels for public sector RNs, and to take appropriate action in addressing salary issues.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 8
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
Importance of Reducing Injuries to Nurses
and
Maintaining a Good Worker’s Compensation Program in Alaska
Whereas, the health care workers – and RN’s in particular -- have some of the highest rates of worker injury of any occupations in Alaska; and
Whereas there have been efforts to reduce Worker’s Compensation rates by limiting the ability of injured workers to obtain benefits.
Therefore Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association will monitor efforts to modify Alaska’s Workers Compensation program, in order to prevent decreases in proper compensation benefits for injured nurses.
Be It Further Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association will continue to support workplace safety education and advocacy efforts in order to prevent injuries to nurses in the workplace.
Be It Further Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association will continue to be proactive by identifying sources of injuries to nurses and work to mitigate these injury producers.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 9
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
Presumptive Compensability
For Nurses Exposed
To Blood-Borne Pathogens
Whereas: Every year nurses are exposed to deadly blood-borne pathogens on the job, primarily through needle-stick, sharps and splash injuries, and
Whereas: There are 600,000 to 800,000 exposures per year, and registered nurses sustain the overwhelming majority of these injuries, and
Whereas: Thousands of health care workers contract serious infections every year from exposure to patients, and
Whereas, the presumption of coverage for workers’ compensation disability for nurses is necessary given the high risk of exposure nurses face in the routine care of patients,
Therefore, be it resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association seek legislation to provide a presumption that a claim for workers compensation for nurses exist for any contagious diseases transmitted through exposure to blood-borne pathogens.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 10
_____Adopted __X__Not Adopted
Appropriate Use of Volunteers
Whereas the AaNA through the years has be sustained by many thousands of hours of work done by volunteer nurses, and
Whereas the economic condition of the Association has improved in recent years,
Therefore be it resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association evaluate the roles filled by volunteers to see if some economic compensation would be appropriate.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 11
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
AaNA to Actively Support Nurses in the Armed Forces
Whereas there are a large number of RNs stationed with the military in Alaska, and
Whereas many of these nurses have served in armed conflicts, or may be deployed soon, and
Whereas many of the nurses and nurse leaders in Alaska come from the military,
Be It Resolved that the Alaska Nurses Association reach-out to the RNs stationed in Alaska and involving them in AaNA activities and work with them to provide special activities to meet their unique needs as nurses.
2005 AaNA General Assembly
October 2, 2005, Fairbanks, Alaska
RESOLUTION NO. 12
__X___Adopted _____Not Adopted
Regarding Application of Toxic Pesticides/Herbicides
Whereas many pesticides and herbicides are toxic to humans and the environment; and
Whereas, the Alaska Nurses Association is a member of the American Nurses Association which has adopted the precautionary principle;
Be It Resolved that AaNA will continue to advocate for the health of all Alaskans and public awareness of such; and
Be It Further Resolved that AaNA opposes aerial or large scale application of pesticides/herbicides except in those cases affecting public health; and
Be It Further Resolved that AaNA will work with other organizations and governmental bodies to address this issue.