Watch CBS News

Bay Area Nurses' Union Sends Letter to Pres. Obama Urging Ebola Safety Mandate

OAKLAND (KCBS) — The largest union of registered nurses in the United States, headquartered in Oakland, is calling on President Obama to mandate uniform standards and protocols for the treatment of Ebola.

Bay Area Nurses' Union Sends Letter to Pres. Obama Urging Ebola Safety Mandate

Deborah Berger, who is co-president of National Nurses United, said they have been contacted by nurses from Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas reporting ill-preparation by the hospital that treated Ebola patient Thomas Duncan, including leaving him in areas with other patients and sending his lab specimens though the hospital tubes system.

"The result is that the entire tube system, which all lab specimens are sent, was potentially contaminated," she said.

RoseAnn DeMoro, executive director of NNU, said that in a Wednesday conference call, that they have sent a letter to the president, urging him to mandate hospitals, provide full hazmat suits, hands-on training, a 2:1 nurse-to-patient staffing ratio and more for Ebola cases.

"We know that without these mandates, to health care facilities, we're putting registered nurses, physicians, and other health care workers at extreme risk," she said.

DeMoro said that it's outrageous that it's become the union's responsibility to call for the highest standards and said there demands could escalate to picket lines with the public to address what the World Health Organization has called the most significant health care crisis in modern history.

More Ebola Stories:

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.