The Thanksgiving Holiday has come and gone, and we are now into preparation for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, and Ramadan, just to name a few, and depending on how one chooses to celebrate,! Was thinking the other day, during this festive time, of all that this nurse has to be grateful for in his life. And strange as it may seem, NAGE came up on the list !

But then the question arose, …why ? Not so much why am I grateful for NAGE, for

that will become evident by the end of this brief note. But rather, “Why belong in the first place ?” Surely I see myself as a good nurse. And surely, working for such a large setting as the VA, there exists plenty of established avenues within said organization to address any grievances or problems I may have as an employee. Well, true, on both parts. So then, why a Union, and why a Union membership ?

The answer, quite simply,….because one never knows ! One never knows, despite the mantle of being a good nurse, when one might, being human, somewhere down the road

make a mistake. And, while granted there DO exist resources within the VA to protect oneself, and address grievances, one never knows when they may not be enough. Finally,

and quite honestly, there are none so strongly behind the working nurse as NAGE !

Case in point….

While definitely seen as a good nurse, and a valued employee, this RN awhile ago found himself on the proposed receiving end of a disciplinary action. The proposed action resulted from the delayed signing off on notes within a certain practice area. While there can be no excuse for such tardiness, and none was sought, the proposed administrative discipline for same was, initially, far in excess, it seemed, to the infraction. The proposed admonishment would have remained on this nurse’s record for a full two years, potentially impacting annual evaluations, promotion, and even salary for those two years.

With the help of NAGE, and admittedly, a supervisor willing to listen, a case was presented to lessen the proposed disciplinary action. At the end of the day, and only this nurse feels, with the help of the very knowledgeable and able president of our local NAGE chapter, Ms. Evelyn Cipriaso, RN, BSN, the action taken was reduced to a written letter of warning. The letter of warning will remain on the record for six months only, and then, with no other repeat oversights on this nurse’s part, fall away, resulting in a return to a totally clean employment record.

So, why, in spite of being a good nurse, and despite avenues for being able to address one’s concerns and problems, belong to one’s Union ? Because, there is STRENGTH in NUMBERS, and, …..quite simply, ….because one never knows !