MARQUETTE -- Marquette General Hospital nurses have contacted their Michigan Nurses Association representative to meet with administrators regarding a patient brandishing a knife last weekend.
On Saturday night Northern Michigan University Public Safety dealt with a man at the hospital that pulled out a knife while talking with a nurse in the ER waiting room. A registered nurse at Marquette General Hospital issued a statement on the incident.
"While it's fortunate that no one was hurt during this incident, we can't afford to ignore the nurses' security concerns and the serious risks they face," said Registered Nurse Carolyn Hietamaki. "MGH nurses are encountering more volatile situations, in part because of the rise in substance abuse patients and recent policy changes by the hospital."
MGH nurses are utilizing their Michigan Nurses Association representative to ask hospital administrators for a meeting to address the incident and circumstances that led to it. Hospital officials have agreed to meet with the nurses, according to Hietamaki.
"MGH nurses want to make sure our hospital is a safe place, not just for nurses, but also for patients and their families," Hietamaki concluded.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forWLUC