In what may be the first such agreement in the U.S., the University of Michigan Health System has signed a memorandum of understanding with the state's nurses union that sets guidelines for staffing, benefits, training and working conditions in the event that the system's Ann Arbor medical center receives a potential Ebola patient.
Specialized training that registered nurses who treat an Ebola patient must undergo is detailed, as is the personal protection equipment that the system must provide. The guidelines also require that three nurses be assigned to an Ebola patient at all times—one directly caring for the patient in a negative-pressure room, another in the anteroom outside the patient's room and a third at the nursing desk.
Nurses treating an Ebola patient will work 12-hour shifts, rotating between roles in four-hour increments, the agreement states. An additional fourth RN should be available to the Ebola care team if needed.
The University of Michigan Health System agreement requires that the system must provide all nurses caring for an Ebola patient with no-cost accommodations if they wish to limit their exposure to others or are required to do so by law.
In the event that a nurse contracts Ebola in the workplace, the nurse's pay will not be affected during treatment and recovery, and he or she will not be required to use benefits to make up for missed work for up to 12 months. Similar rules apply for nurses who must withdraw from shifts because they require quarantine.
