The Baby Brigade follows the delivery of a community petition signed by more than 650 people demanding Baystate Health respect nurses, protect patients and invest in local care
GREENFIELD, Mass. – Calling all past, present, and future Baystate Franklin Medical Center birthplace parents, kids, families, and friends! BFMC nurses will host a Baby Brigade outside the hospital and at Beacon Field on May 6, timed to honor Mother’s Day and mark the beginning of National Nurses Week, May 6 to 12. The brigade will serve as a solidarity event as nurses negotiate a new MNA contract and will be lots of fun for all ages.
BFMC RN Baby Brigade
Time: Starts at 10:30 a.m.
Date: Friday, May 6, 2022
Location: Begins with a gathering outside Baystate Franklin Medical Center and continues with a march to Beacon Field.
Details: Featuring local treats from Greenfield cafes, kids’ music by Little Roots Music, and The Art Garden leading arts and crafts.
“Our patients and our community are why Baystate Franklin nurses remain so dedicated to our work despite the enormous challenges we face,” said Donna Stern, RN in the BFMC mental health unit and MNA Co-Chair. “We look forward to gathering as nurses and staff, and as families and friends, to have fun and let Baystate Health know we are in this together.”
“Baystate Franklin and our birthplace is at the heart of our community,” said Suzanne Love, RN in the BFMC emergency department and MNA Co-Chair. “Ahead of Mother’s Day, we are looking forward to coming together and having a fun party with the community of friends and family that make up the spirit of the hospital."
The brigade follows delivery of a community petition on April 27 to Baystate Health Board of Trustees Chair Robert Bacon seeking immediate action from Baystate on valuing BFMC nurses, protecting patients and keeping care local. BFMC nurses have been negotiating a new MNA contract, their first since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Nurses are concerned about the approach Baystate Health is taking so far in negotiations, as executives refuse to commit to long-term staffing protections and have not agreed to make the improvements necessary to boost nurse recruitment and retention during these challenging times.
The petition delivery came after a March 9 virtual community forum attended by more than 100 people and featuring testimony from nurses, elected officials, and labor and community supporters. Nurses have also launched a lawn sign campaign and are holding regular banner standouts in front of Baystate Health locations.
Despite the pandemic, Baystate Health has continued to make substantial profits. The system made $44.2 million in profits in 2020 and $135 million in 2021, according to the Center for Health Information and Analysis. A significant portion of those profits are going to executive compensation. Between 2018 and 2020, CEO Dr. Mark Keroack made $6.4 million, including $2.45 million in 2020.
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Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.
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