Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, the parent company of ASC chain United Surgical Partners International, is facing a lawsuit filed by eight nurses at Worcester, Mass.-based Saint Vincent Hospital.
The suit alleges the nurses, who are represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, were wrongfully terminated after they raised concerns about staffing shortages affecting care quality.
The complaint, shared with Becker's March 21, alleges that staffing shortages the hospital has been facing for more than a year have led to delayed care and often require nurses to assume a 20-patient assignment. Nurses allege the hospital does not comply with nurse staffing guidelines and have filed more than 600 complaints against the hospital since July 2023.
The lawsuit seeks an order of reinstatement to return the nurses with full benefits and seniority, reasonable legal costs and a permanent injunction to restrain continued violations of the whistleblower law. The complaint says nurses are protected by Massachusetts whistleblower law, which protects them from retaliation for disclosing concerns that their employer is posing a risk to public health.
A spokesperson for the hospital has not returned Becker's request for comment on the litigation. In February, Tenet alleged the union's claims were "unfounded" and accused it of "organizing publicity stunts, spreading false rumors and intimidating our leadership," in a statement.
Tenet has not returned Becker's requests for comment. This story will be updated if more information becomes available.