The Chicago Teachers Union wants the district to scrap a multimillion-dollar deal for outsourced school nurses, saying in a newly released report that hiring nonunion nurses puts the system’s 400,000 students at risk.
The union-produced report says “privatizing the nursing department will create a health disaster in Chicago,” and calls on Chicago Public Schools to hire a full-time registered nurse for each school, as well as additional support staff.
In June, the Chicago Board of Education approved a four-year nursing staff contract for up to $30 million with RCM Technologies Inc. The district asked the New York-based firm to improve the scheduling, training and recruiting practices for school nurses.
CTU concerns about school nursing services are part of a broader debate over the availability of school-based “wraparound” services — which include health care — for at-risk students. The union says CPS nurses struggle to meet the demands of complying with specialized learning plans for students with disabilities, not to mention the needs of other pupils.
But the debate is also political, since many CPS nurses are CTU members who hold protections under the union’s expired labor contract with the district. The union has been a frequent critic of district efforts to privatize its operations.
Some of the union-member registered nurses, known as certified school nurses, hold educator licenses and are the only personnel cleared to assess the special education needs of students. Those nurses are required to attend regular school meetings with special education personnel.
CPS has turned to private contractors to supply nurses before, but the union report argues the latest deal is intended to “eventually eliminate the union nursing positions” and replace them with temporary staffers who don’t receive employment benefits that include pensions.
“Rather than fully funding certified school nurses, CPS is cutting corners with private contracts which fail to save money and have serious health impacts on kids,” the union said. “Their budget practices and priorities are starving students of adequate health services.”
The district’s nursing plan presents a threat to the most vulnerable students, the union report argued.
“These students need full-time, professional nurses who know their needs and are dedicated to improving their health. CPS should not be outsourcing the health care of our students.”
Union nurses plan to protest the district contract Wednesday prior to the school board’s monthly meeting.
The district said many of the company’s “supplemental” nurses reported to the same school and that few students have experienced a change to their primary care nurse.
“CPS is providing more nursing services to more students because our partnership with RCM is filling critical vacancies and supplementing services the district provides,” district spokeswoman Emily Bittner said in a statement.
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