As I write, my husband is a patient in Providence Portland’s surgical oncology unit. Several days ago, he underwent a 10-hour surgery to remove a cancerous abdominal tumor. The Whipple procedure is his only hope for surviving pancreatic cancer. Post-surgical complication rates for a Whipple run approximately 30 to 35%; the quality of nursing skills are directly reflected in that rate.
Despite the training and competence of his Providence Portland nurses, those nurses are paid significantly less per hour than other Portland area counterparts. Even Providence St. Vincent Hospital nurses are paid more per hour than those here. After Providence management agreed to pay its St. Vincent nurses more, they did not extend the same offer to its nursing staff on the other side of the river. No wonder the registered nurses here have voted to strike, (“Providence nurses in Portland, Seaside plan 5-day strike this month,” June 9).