Hundreds of the AFT's nurses and health professionals came to Washington, D.C., April 20-22 to raise their voices on the issues affecting frontline workers and their patients. The theme of this year's Professional Issues Conference and Labor Academy, "Where the Front Line Meets the Bottom Line," describes the challenges we are seeing today, said Candice Owley, chair of the AFT Nurses and Health Professionals program and policy council and an AFT vice president, in her opening remarks.

"The theme reflects what health professionals see firsthand, the relentless pursuit of profit and the results of this focus on profit," Owley said. "We've been talking about the crisis in healthcare for years and the conversation hasn't changed."

"We are fighting for transparency and accountability in our healthcare system," she added. "There is so much work yet to be done, which is why is we have come together so we can push back." The conference was meant to give participants the tools they need to step up and engage in this fight, she noted. "It's a tall order, and things won't change overnight, and we won't be able to do it without working with communities and other advocates. And we need strong, engaged locals to win."

With a growing number of hospitals consolidating and focused solely on profit, it's up to the labor community to figure out how we can reclaim the promise of high-quality healthcare. "People are getting squeezed, so we have to take on bigger issues," AFT President Randi Weingarten told members during the opening session.

One way the AFT NHP division is taking on big issues is through Patients Before Profits, a campaign designed to expose what is happening in our system. "By calling companies out for their behavior, we are changing what's happening in healthcare," Weingarten said.

'You are a powerful voice for patients'
In fact, more than 100 members spent a day lobbying on Capitol Hill, where they made more than 200 visits to lawmakers to discuss a number of their issues, including the rising costs of prescription drugs, safe patient handling, nurse staffing ratios, the Zika virus, the Flint water crisis and the opioid crisis.

"I stand with you in the fight for transparency, accountability and quality in our healthcare system," Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) told participants during a plenary session. "You are a powerful voice for patients and this community. I thank you so much for being allies in the fight." DeLauro was joined by lawmakers Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)

At a later session, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) also thanked AFT members for their lobby day efforts. "I want you to continue to bang on the doors of your members of Congress and stand up for what you want. Everyone thinks members of Congress are experts on everything, but we are not. That's why we need people like you who know the impact of what's happening in healthcare. We need the witnesses, and there is no one better than you," said Cummings. "I want you to be encouraged because what you do makes a difference, especially when you raise your voices together."

'Your work is essential'
The conference featured a panel focused on what the healthcare system of the future might look like. The panel included diverse perspectives from the healthcare workforce and industry, including healthcare policy experts Dr. Fred Hyde, a clinical professor at Columbia University's School of Public Health and a consultant; Patricia Pittman, co-director of the George Washington University Health Workforce Institute and an associate professor at GW's School of Public Health; and Melanie Gobourne, founder and president of Washington, D.C. Healthcare Advocates.

Mary Wakefield, acting deputy director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, spoke at the conference about how her agency is making solid progress on building a better healthcare system for all Americans. "We are working to solve challenges that impact communities, and we feel fortunate to be in partnership with the AFT," said Wakefield. HHS would like to work closely with our locals to provide health professionals with information about HHS programs. "Your work is essential to our strategy for improving healthcare," she said.

Stephen Lerner, a fellow at Georgetown University's Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor, discussed how members can focus on bargaining for the common good. The idea is to bargain for the bigger picture, he said. For example, when nurses bargain successfully for improved nurse staffing ratios in contracts, it will improve not only working conditions but also the quality of patient care. "The conditions that are throttling us are creating an opportunity for unions to do something spectacular," said Lerner.

The three-day conference offered dozens of workshops that gave participants strategies they could take home to begin to change their healthcare systems and engage their communities. Workshop topics ranged from how to partner with the community to meet their health needs, to how to prevent workplace violence, to how quality measurements work and why they matter. In addition, members were able to lend a hand to the Detroit community by packing health kits for upcoming health fairs for the Detroit Public Schools. There was also a health fair that featured blood pressure screenings and provided tips on nutrition, health and workplace safety.  

[Adrienne Coles/photos by Michael Campbell]

Hundreds of the AFT's nurses and health professionals came to Washington, D.C., April 20-22 to raise their voices on the issues affecting frontline workers and their patients. The theme of this year's Professional Issues Conference and Labor Academy, "Where the Front Line Meets the Bottom Line," describes the challenges we are seeing today, said Candice Owley, chair of the AFT Nurses and Health Professionals program and policy council and an AFT vice president, in her opening remarks.

"The theme reflects what health professionals see firsthand, the relentless pursuit of profit and the results of this focus on profit," Owley said. "We've been talking about the crisis in healthcare for years and the conversation hasn't changed."

"We are fighting for transparency and accountability in our healthcare system," she added. "There is so much work yet to be done, which is why is we have come together so we can push back." The conference was meant to give participants the tools they need to step up and engage in this fight, she noted. "It's a tall order, and things won't change overnight, and we won't be able to do it without working with communities and other advocates. And we need strong, engaged locals to win."

With a growing number of hospitals consolidating and focused solely on profit, it's up to the labor community to figure out how we can reclaim the promise of high-quality healthcare. "People are getting squeezed, so we have to take on bigger issues," AFT President Randi Weingarten told members during the opening session.

One way the AFT NHP division is taking on big issues is through Patients Before Profits, a campaign designed to expose what is happening in our system. "By calling companies out for their behavior, we are changing what's happening in healthcare," Weingarten said.

'You are a powerful voice for patients'
In fact, more than 100 members spent a day lobbying on Capitol Hill, where they made more than 200 visits to lawmakers to discuss a number of their issues, including the rising costs of prescription drugs, safe patient handling, nurse staffing ratios, the Zika virus, the Flint water crisis and the opioid crisis.

"I stand with you in the fight for transparency, accountability and quality in our healthcare system," Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) told participants during a plenary session. "You are a powerful voice for patients and this community. I thank you so much for being allies in the fight." DeLauro was joined by lawmakers Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)

At a later session, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) also thanked AFT members for their lobby day efforts. "I want you to continue to bang on the doors of your members of Congress and stand up for what you want. Everyone thinks members of Congress are experts on everything, but we are not. That's why we need people like you who know the impact of what's happening in healthcare. We need the witnesses, and there is no one better than you," said Cummings. "I want you to be encouraged because what you do makes a difference, especially when you raise your voices together."

'Your work is essential'
The conference featured a panel focused on what the healthcare system of the future might look like. The panel included diverse perspectives from the healthcare workforce and industry, including healthcare policy experts Dr. Fred Hyde, a clinical professor at Columbia University's School of Public Health and a consultant; Patricia Pittman, co-director of the George Washington University Health Workforce Institute and an associate professor at GW's School of Public Health; and Melanie Gobourne, founder and president of Washington, D.C. Healthcare Advocates.

Mary Wakefield, acting deputy director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, spoke at the conference about how her agency is making solid progress on building a better healthcare system for all Americans. "We are working to solve challenges that impact communities, and we feel fortunate to be in partnership with the AFT," said Wakefield. HHS would like to work closely with our locals to provide health professionals with information about HHS programs. "Your work is essential to our strategy for improving healthcare," she said.

Stephen Lerner, a fellow at Georgetown University's Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor, discussed how members can focus on bargaining for the common good. The idea is to bargain for the bigger picture, he said. For example, when nurses bargain successfully for improved nurse staffing ratios in contracts, it will improve not only working conditions but also the quality of patient care. "The conditions that are throttling us are creating an opportunity for unions to do something spectacular," said Lerner.

The three-day conference offered dozens of workshops that gave participants strategies they could take home to begin to change their healthcare systems and engage their communities. Workshop topics ranged from how to partner with the community to meet their health needs, to how to prevent workplace violence, to how quality measurements work and why they matter. In addition, members were able to lend a hand to the Detroit community by packing health kits for upcoming health fairs for the Detroit Public Schools. There was also a health fair that featured blood pressure screenings and provided tips on nutrition, health and workplace safety.  

[Adrienne Coles/photos by Michael Campbell]

Hundreds of the AFT's nurses and health professionals came to Washington, D.C., April 20-22 to raise their voices on the issues affecting frontline workers and their patients. The theme of this year's Professional Issues Conference and Labor Academy, "Where the Front Line Meets the Bottom Line," describes the challenges we are seeing today, said Candice Owley, chair of the AFT Nurses and Health Professionals program and policy council and an AFT vice president, in her opening remarks.

"The theme reflects what health professionals see firsthand, the relentless pursuit of profit and the results of this focus on profit," Owley said. "We've been talking about the crisis in healthcare for years and the conversation hasn't changed."

"We are fighting for transparency and accountability in our healthcare system," she added. "There is so much work yet to be done, which is why is we have come together so we can push back." The conference was meant to give participants the tools they need to step up and engage in this fight, she noted. "It's a tall order, and things won't change overnight, and we won't be able to do it without working with communities and other advocates. And we need strong, engaged locals to win."

With a growing number of hospitals consolidating and focused solely on profit, it's up to the labor community to figure out how we can reclaim the promise of high-quality healthcare. "People are getting squeezed, so we have to take on bigger issues," AFT President Randi Weingarten told members during the opening session.

One way the AFT NHP division is taking on big issues is through Patients Before Profits, a campaign designed to expose what is happening in our system. "By calling companies out for their behavior, we are changing what's happening in healthcare," Weingarten said.

'You are a powerful voice for patients'
In fact, more than 100 members spent a day lobbying on Capitol Hill, where they made more than 200 visits to lawmakers to discuss a number of their issues, including the rising costs of prescription drugs, safe patient handling, nurse staffing ratios, the Zika virus, the Flint water crisis and the opioid crisis.

"I stand with you in the fight for transparency, accountability and quality in our healthcare system," Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) told participants during a plenary session. "You are a powerful voice for patients and this community. I thank you so much for being allies in the fight." DeLauro was joined by lawmakers Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)

At a later session, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) also thanked AFT members for their lobby day efforts. "I want you to continue to bang on the doors of your members of Congress and stand up for what you want. Everyone thinks members of Congress are experts on everything, but we are not. That's why we need people like you who know the impact of what's happening in healthcare. We need the witnesses, and there is no one better than you," said Cummings. "I want you to be encouraged because what you do makes a difference, especially when you raise your voices together."

'Your work is essential'
The conference featured a panel focused on what the healthcare system of the future might look like. The panel included diverse perspectives from the healthcare workforce and industry, including healthcare policy experts Dr. Fred Hyde, a clinical professor at Columbia University's School of Public Health and a consultant; Patricia Pittman, co-director of the George Washington University Health Workforce Institute and an associate professor at GW's School of Public Health; and Melanie Gobourne, founder and president of Washington, D.C. Healthcare Advocates.

Mary Wakefield, acting deputy director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, spoke at the conference about how her agency is making solid progress on building a better healthcare system for all Americans. "We are working to solve challenges that impact communities, and we feel fortunate to be in partnership with the AFT," said Wakefield. HHS would like to work closely with our locals to provide health professionals with information about HHS programs. "Your work is essential to our strategy for improving healthcare," she said.

Stephen Lerner, a fellow at Georgetown University's Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor, discussed how members can focus on bargaining for the common good. The idea is to bargain for the bigger picture, he said. For example, when nurses bargain successfully for improved nurse staffing ratios in contracts, it will improve not only working conditions but also the quality of patient care. "The conditions that are throttling us are creating an opportunity for unions to do something spectacular," said Lerner.

The three-day conference offered dozens of workshops that gave participants strategies they could take home to begin to change their healthcare systems and engage their communities. Workshop topics ranged from how to partner with the community to meet their health needs, to how to prevent workplace violence, to how quality measurements work and why they matter. In addition, members were able to lend a hand to the Detroit community by packing health kits for upcoming health fairs for the Detroit Public Schools. There was also a health fair that featured blood pressure screenings and provided tips on nutrition, health and workplace safety.  

[Adrienne Coles/photos by Michael Campbell]