On Sunday, the three-year contract between Butler Memorial Hospital and Pennsylvania Independent Nurses went into effect.

That is great development for the nurses, hospital and community.

After the incredible strain of the COVID-19 pandemic working conditions, the more than 400 registered nurses have a contract that includes wage increases, improved benefits and a new weekend program.

The toll on those caring for our loved ones has been high. Nurses at BMH have seen more death, held more hands and supported more grief-stricken families in two years than any of their training has foreseen.

When the death toll from COVID-19 in Butler County surpassed 500 in October, Karen Allen, chief nursing officer at Butler Health System, told the Eagle that staff felt the magnitude of that number.

“It has taken a lot of emotional toll on everybody,” Allen said. “We have three units we have COVID patients in and we ask staff, 'Are you OK?' And they just start crying.”

The pandemic is not over. Today the number is 734 dead in Butler County from COVID, and we've seen a flurry of new cases.

But even in the best of times, everyday duties sometimes place our nurses in physical danger from the very patients they are trying to help. A Butler Eagle special report in February revealed nurses are sometimes attacked, threatened and beaten on the job.

In 2011, the incident rate of violence-caused injuries to health care workers was 6.4 per 100 full-time employees, according to the U.S. Department of Labor data. In 2018, that rate rose to 10.4 per 100 full-time employees.

“You never know what's coming through those doors," Tammy May, a registered nurse in the intensive care unit and president of the nurses’ local union, told the Eagle.

This new contract works to maintain the nurses at BMH and encourage those emerging into the field to see the hospital as a good place to work.

“We’re proud to work at a hospital that truly invests in high-quality nursing care and respects the skill and commitment of its nursing staff and the excellent care we provide to our community,” May said.

The nurses, along with other health care professionals and support staff at BMH, have received the thanks and appreciation of the community through a variety of thank-yous through the years — from donations of food, acts of individual kindness and impromptu rallies to boost their spirits.

With this contract, BMH leadership again acknowledges the nurses' value.

“The last few years have presented many challenges, this agreement maintains our commitment to employees,” Allen said. “We have maintained our position as a leader in the market with respect to pay and benefits and demonstrated our unwavering commitment to our staff and the important work they do.”

The community is grateful to know that the nurses taking care of them are taken care of too.

— DJS