WATCH: 'No Good Progress,' As Nurses Poised To Strike In Valley Stream

VALLEY STREAM, NY — More than 200 nurses at Long Island Jewish Valley Stream are poised to strike. The nursing staff, through their union, New York State Nurses Association, voted 99.5% in favor of authorizing a strike at the Northwell Health hospital.

"We are available for negotiations any time of the day [and] any time of the night," Leesa John, a longtime LIJ Valley Stream registered nurse, told Patch.

For John and her colleagues, the biggest concern is safe staffing.

"In order to do that, the patient/nurse ratio has to be safe," she said. "In our hospital, one nurse has to take care of eight patients [each] with serious illnesses."

John said that understaffing makes it "impossible to take care of a patient in a safe manner."

She said nurses across the area, including at other Northwell hospitals, have no more than six patients under their care.

"It's all going into deaf ears," John said of management's response to their needs.

Compounding the problem, John said the nurses work 12-hour shifts with little to no breaks, and they are exhausted."

A spokesperson from Northwell Health said on Friday:

"LIJ Valley Stream Hospital and Peconic Bay Medical Center are disappointed in NYSNA’s decision to issue a strike notice but as always, our goal is to reach a fair contract. We remain optimistic that an agreement can be reached and will continue to bargain in good faith. We look forward to ongoing positive and productive negotiations with NYSNA."

However, John is less optimistic following meetings at the bargaining earlier in the week.

"I'm sorry to say that we haven't seen any good progress with our negotiations," she said, as she remains hopeful that a strike can be avoided.

"We don't want to put our patients in any peril," John said. "That's why we are giving management enough time to prepare in case we are going on strike."

The Northwell spokesperson added: "In the event of a strike, patient care remains our highest priority. We will continue to serve our patients and our community by providing uninterrupted world-class care."

Watch the full Patch Weekly Spotlight interview below with Leesa John.