Kaiser Permanente Hawaii said it is forging ahead with a plan to eliminate 46 registered nurse positions at some primary care clinics over the next few months.
The state’s largest health maintenance organization said it will replace them with licensed practical nurses and medical assistants more appropriately suited for clinic duties.
Registered nurses (RNs) undergo a considerable amount more educational training than do licensed practical nurses (LPNs). RNs are in school sometimes for an additional two to three years beyond LPNs, according to AlliedHealthWorld.com. LPNs can typically complete their training in a year or less.
Affected RNs can choose to take severance pay or fill other positions that will better utilize their skills within the organization, said Kaiser spokeswoman Laura Lott.
"Redeploying registered nurses to where they can use their skills to deliver more complicated and advanced treatment improves quality," Lott said. "You don’t need to be an RN to make appointments or take height, weight and blood pressure measurements. Other staff such as medical assistants and LPNs are qualified to provide those services."
However, some Kaiser registered nurses, who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to talk to media, fear the cuts will compromise patient safety and quality care.
The HMO said it has held off on filling some openings over the past several weeks to give affected nurses more opportunities to secure a position. Kaiser offered contract buyouts to 280 nurses late last year. About 25 nurses accepted the buyouts.
"We currently have more than 40 RN positions available for the 46 affected nurses to choose from," Lott added. "The open positions may require some nursing staff to change locations, hours and work assignments. We are hopeful that every affected nurse will choose to remain with Kaiser."
Kaiser said it has held in-house job fairs to make the change as smooth as possible for affected employees wanting to move to new or vacant positions, and is also offering retraining to improve or expand specialty skills.
About 195 registered nurses work in the clinics, and roughly 850 work in the organization. Registered nurses at Moanalua Medical Center, Kaiser’s sole hospital on Oahu, are not affected.
Meanwhile, the company will close the Urgent Care Center at the Honolulu Clinic on March 16 and cut operating hours at the Moanalua Ambulatory Treatment Center to 10 hours, six days a week from 12 hours, seven days a week.
A bargaining committee of Unite Here Local 5, which represents 1,900 Kaiser workers statewide, last week authorized the union to move forward with preparations, including a potential strike, over layoffs due to the planned closure of the Urgent Care Center. Kaiser plans to lay off 13 clerical and emergency tech employees when it shutters the Urgent Care Center.
