Poofa sits with an officer after his rescue. Photo from SCPD
Poofa sits with an officer after his rescue. Photo from SCPD
Suffolk County Police officers rescued a 6-year-old male Goldendoodle from an abandoned cesspool in Kings Park Tuesday night, Oct. 27.
Boris Avezov was outside Superior Ice Rink on Indian Head Road, walking with his dog Poofa at approximately 7:30 p.m., when the dog pulled his leash away from his owner to chase a rabbit. Poofa then fell into a 16-foot abandoned cesspool located behind the ice-skating rink, where he remained for about an hour as officers from Emergency Services worked to free him.
Officers Tom Russo, Mike Cocia and Lance Prager were lowered into the cesspool using a mechanical pulley system. They were then able to adapt a sked, a piece of equipment normally used to rescue people, to save the dog. Officers Glen Baillargeon, Gerry Sheridan and Mike Simpson were also involved in the rescue.
Poofa and the officers were not harmed. Avezov, of Bellmore, was waiting for his children who were ice-skating at the rink.
A car crashed into a home on Pawnee Drive last Friday evening. Photo by Steve Silverman
By Victoria Espinoza
A car drove through the front door of a Commack home on Pawnee Drive this past Friday, Oct. 21.
The Commack Fire Department, Commack Volunteer Ambulance Corps and Suffolk Police responded to the crash at about 7:30 p.m. Commack firefighters operated at the scene with two engines, a heavy rescue truck and fire police, under the command of Third Assistant Chief Bobby Wilkins. There were no reported injuries and the Smithtown Fire Marshal was requested to assess the damage to the home.
The No. 2 Ward Melville girls' tennis team finishes in second place in the Suffolk County standings. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
The conditions at William Floyd High School were less than ideal as the No. 1 and No. 2 girls’ tennis teams battled through wind and cold during the Section XI championship Oct. 25. Ward Melville had a more difficult time overcoming the conditions, and fell to the top-seeded team that avenged a finale loss last season, 6-1.
Shannon Sartain sends the ball back over the net. Photo by Bill Landon
The Patriots lost to the Cougars 4-3 on Sept. 15 — the team’s only loss during the regular season, which was a nonleague match. Ward Melville head coach Erick Sussin said the difference this time around, was that Commack was at full strength.
“The first time we met them they didn’t have their No. 1 singles player, so they beat us 4-3 and that wasn’t even their best team,” Sussin said. “We knew that today would be a lot harder. We had to win four out of seven points, so I knew we had to win second and third doubles, and most likely third and fourth singles.”
Commack’s first and second singles are the rock of the Cougars’ lineup.
Emily Tannenbaum won Commack’s first match, 6-0, 6-1 over Ward Melville freshman Jade Eddleston at second singles. Gabi Glickstein defeated Jillian Shulder 6-7, 6-1, 6-1 at third singles.
“She has extremely consistent groundstrokes,” Sussin said of Eggleston. “She has a gritty determination to win on the court.”
Despite her loss, Shulder, a co-captain and All-League player who Sussin said has consistent, powerful groundstrokes, left it all on the court.
“I played to the best of my ability,” she said. “Even though I lost today — and I won against them last time — I was playing a girl of a higher spot. The wind definitely affects your play because you try to get the ball to do one thing, and it does another.”
Denise Lai continues the volley. Photo by Bill Landon
Sussin said he was pleased with his team’s performance, and added he was proud of the level they achieved, despite the conditions being less than ideal.
“All the girls had to hit through the wind, the serves were tough and lobs were a little hard to deal with,” he said. “The doubles strategy was to try to win the points at the net and not worry about ground strokes, to end the point early because the wind’s going to take it.”
In first doubles, Ward Melville senior Morgan Voulo and sophomore Anna Ma, who the coach said has a tremendous forehand and killer overhands, lost to Commack’s Emma Matz, the younger cousin of New York Mets pitcher Steven Matz, and Julia Kinalis, 6-2, 6-2.
Ward Melville junior Julia Hu and sophomore Dara Berman lost 6-4, 6-1 over Commack’s Emma Mangels and Andrianna Kaimis in second doubles, and Ward Melville seniors Shannon Sartain and Julia Hoffmann fell 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 at third doubles to Commack’s Christine Kong and Victoria Pensiero.
“It was the best that I’ve played and it was hard once I knew that the team had lost,” Sartain said. “But I kept playing and I played hard all the way through.”
Jillian Shulder serves the ball. Photo by Bill Landon
Sartain, an All-Division player, is the leader and heart and soul of the Patriots’ team, according to her head coach.
Voulo, another All-Division co-captain agreed with her teammates that the conditions made it harder for her to perform up to her expectations.
“The wind and how cold it was it made it hard to get through,” she said. “I think I did the best I could. I was pleased with my serve and my forehand, because normally that lets me down, but I think I brought that today.”
Ward Melville sophomore Denise Lai fell 6-3, 6-1 in first singles to seal the victory for Commack (15-1).
“She’s an unbelievable talent,” Sussin said of the sophomore despite her loss. “She has an excellent tennis IQ, all-around game and powerful topspin shots as well as perfect slices. She can crush the ball from the baseline or win on a soft drop shot with ease. Lai knows how to exploit her opponent’s weaknesses and is our quiet leader that all the girls look up to.”
Junior Keren Collins was the only player to win for Ward Melville. She topped her Commack opponent 6-3, 6-2 in fourth singles.
Ward Melville finished the season 16-2 overall, and went undefeated in League V.
“I was pleased with everybody’s performance today,” Sussin said. “When you reach this level everyone’s playing well and conditions were unfavorable for everybody. Commack played some good tennis. They are by far the best team in the county and when you play like they did today, they deserved it.”
Right side hitter Brendan Smith blocks the ball. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
Senior night was off to a rocky start at Smithtown West, as the Bulls bounced back from a first-set loss to top Sayville 3-1 Oct. 24, 25-16, 25-16, 25-16 and 25-23. At 9-2, the boys’ volleyball team is in third place behind 10-2 Eastport South Manorville and undefeated Sachem North with three games left before the playoffs.
Outside hitter Kevin Kelleher comes through with a kill shot. Photo by Bill Landon
“Our teamwork and our hustle — we [communicated] really well and we played well as a team,” junior outside hitter Kevin Kelleher said. “We’ll keep working and build that family bond and hopefully that will help us in the playoffs.”
Smithtown West head coach Michael Legge said there would be a different mix in the first set, because all five seniors took to the court. The squad pulled within six points late in the set, but couldn’t come back from the deficit.
The second set was a different story, as the Bulls jumped out front 6-2 and rattled off four more straight points before Sayville called timeout.
“This is a deep team — it’s 16 players — not just the six guys you see on the court,” Legge said. “In practice, the [nonstarters are] constantly pushing the starters to play better and better.”
The Golden Flashes broke service and fired back with four unanswered points of their own to trail 10-6, but after the teams traded points, the Bulls notched six more on a service tare to break out to a 16-10 advantage.
Right side blocker Brian Grudman pushes the ball back over the net. Photo by Bill Landon
Bull’s outside hitter Chris Shanley led his team to break point and finished it with a booming service ace that caught Sayville flat footed, to take the second set 25-16.
“The second set was the turning point,” Shanley said. “We had to push through there to show them what we’re made of. We passed well, we had good service, and our blocking was a little shaky, but we hit the ball well.”
Smithtown West senior Brendan Smith got things going in the third set, stringing five point volleys in a row to lead his team to a 5-0 lead. Sayville struggled, committing several mental errors to which the Bulls cashed in on.
Out front 10-4, the Bulls turned up the heat, outscoring their opponent 9-2 for a commanding 19-6 advantage. But Sayville wouldn’t go down quietly, and battled backed to trail 23-16.
In the first three sets, with a 25-16 margin of victory for each, the fourth and final set proved to be even more of a nail biter.
Sayville peppered the scoreboard with 12 points early in the fourth set as the Bulls managed just three. Although the match made it look like the game would end up going to a fifth set, Smithtown West chipped away at the deficit and scored nine unanswered points as Sayville’s defense began to sputter, committing several unforced errors.
Right side hitter Brendan Smith sets up a play. Photo by Bill Landon
Senior right side blocker Brian Grudman answered with a thundering service ace to put his team out front for the first time in the set, 13-12, and said his team had to just shake it off as the Bulls got their head back in the game.
“Our hustle and our ability to pick ourselves back up — not giving up on any balls [is what led us to the win],” he said. “We’re going to raise the net, show some hustle work our butts off as hard as we can.”
Ahead 17-14 lead, Sayville soon brought the set to a 23-23 tie, which prompted a timeout. Sayville gave Smithtown West break point on a service error, and the Bulls made them pay for it, scoring the final point to put the set away.
“They’ve really bought into the team concept — the court defense, the passing, the hustle that they show,” Legge said. “We push that for every single point every single game, and you don’t say die until the ball hits the floor.”
The subject of this talk is American education; or, as I sometimes call it … artificial intelligence. Full disclosure: I admit that I don’t know much about what goes on in high school, having spent only four distracted years at that level. This presentation refers to the foundational years — the K-6 building blocks where I invested six seasons as a parochial student.
After completing the requirements at Adelphi Suffolk University, I was invited to teach a few graduate courses there. Afterwards, I spent 34 enjoyable, yet disorganized seasons as a classroom teacher, then eight more years instructing a course called Thinking Inside the Box for K-12 teachers, which gave me the opportunity to examine the species up close and personal. That comes to about 50 years in fuzzy numbers. But, who’s counting on me?
You’re urged to disagree with anything expressed here, because I make mistakes regularly, myself being a product of the American industrial-education complex. Let’s start with the premise that all knowledge is worthwhile and desirable. There is no benefit to not knowing something. Ignorance is not blissful. However, all knowledge is not of equal value. The ability to read about the inventor of the cotton gin is of more value than knowing and memorizing his name. Likewise, although there would be some usefulness in recalling every number in the Manhattan phone book, and the cognitive exercise would be an accomplishment, it would mostly be a huge waste of “edu-minutes.” Knowing how to alphabetically look up a phone number is a more valuable and transferable skill. At least until it’s made obsolete in our advancing digital world. So, can we agree that some knowledge is of lower value, some is of higher value, and some is rapidly approaching an expiring shelf life?
Since schools operate by the clock and calendar, there is a finite amount of class time for learning. There is so much to learn, but students can’t learn it all. So, choices must be made. Schools need to adopt a regular policy of knowledge triage. There’s got to be jetsam and flotsam in order to make room for the important cargo. But even if schools agreed to do it, would they flotsam the right jetsam?
Ask your local administrator what’s the last thing added to the curriculum. Then ask, what was removed to make room for it. If there’s no answer, it means the program was diluted (unless the school day or year was expanded — not a chance) or in a misguided way, the usual ballast of art and music were reduced. Like the roach motel, once something enters the schoolhouse door, it can almost never leave. Schools change very little. If you were in the fifth grade 25 years ago and you visited a class today, it would look very familiar. Computers and tablets are used like electric paper, but the substance is the same. Oh, the blackboards are now smarter … but are the kids? Old wine in new bottles.
Remember, the learning clock is ticking. Time is passing. As a child, I had a fantasy of every person, at birth, receiving a huge hourglass. Except it wasn’t designed to measure an hour. It was constructed as a lifetime-glass. The top bulb contained all the sand representing one’s life according to actuarial tables. It was inverted at birth and the sand started trickling through the narrow stem passageway. One could see the top bulb dripping sand into the bottom bulb. Even at night, opening one eye, one could visualize their lifetime with the lower heap growing while the upper kept draining smaller. I wondered if a life would be led differently with such a visual aid.
Schools have to think that way. They must sort out, rummage through, and evaluate all available knowledge and select those age-appropriate things that will help develop students into educated people with transferable skills and functional wisdom. Ideally, layer upon layer will build up until enough practical knowledge and related talents enable graduates to negotiate life in a fluid and uncertain world — a very moveable feast. A friend recently told me the experience of his dental school orientation at the University of Maryland. The dean advised the new students that 50% of what they’d learn would no longer be true by the time they graduated. Furthermore, he advised, they won’t know which 50% it was.
So what did we learn in school? Reading. Of course reading. And math. Although I never did divide 4/7 by 3/9 ever again, I remember some lessons quite well. Pilgrims wore funny hats and buckled shoes. We drew pictures of them. They were brought home and taped to refrigerators — or iceboxes —remember, this was the South Bronx in the ‘50s. “Mary’s violet eyes … ” helped us learn what was, at the time, the order of the planets. But of what practical value is there in knowing that Jupiter is nearer to the earth than Saturn? So little time … so much knowledge.
Bruce Stasiuk of Setauket continued to teach after retirement. He currently offers workshops to seniors (citizens, that is) as an instructor in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, housed on the campus of Stony Brook University.
It may look very pretty all wrapped in a red holiday bow, but for all the believers out there, the Country House is said to be haunted. File photo
By Ernestine Franco
It’s the time of the year when children and adults alike will be out en masse on the lookout for ghosts, ghouls, and goblins. During the month of October, which culminates on Halloween, the North Shore of Long Island has many places to satisfy die-hard thrill seekers. However, if you want to experience “real” haunted places on the North Shore, check out the list below:
Kings Park Psychiatric Center, located on West Fourth Street in Kings Park has been closed for many years and is not open to the public. For many years, Long Islanders have broken into this historic location to see the eerie, condemned facilities. At its height, the psychiatric center was home to over 9,000 patients. They were subjected to overcrowding and deplorable conditions as well as dramatic procedures, such as lobotomies and electroshock therapy. From inside and outside the many buildings, people have reported yells and screams of deceased patients, and some say they can see ghosts in the windows. Although you cannot go into the buildings, you can drive through the grounds for a quick peek. The grounds are monitored by the police.
Country House Restaurant is located at 1175 Country House Road in Stony Brook. This building has a prerevolutionary story behind it. It is believed to be haunted by Annette Williamson, the daughter of a former owner. She had allowed British soldiers to stay in the home and was believed to be a spy. She was hung from the second-story rafters and her spirit haunts the kitchen and stairways. Visitors say they can hear her cries and light bulbs flicker. The restaurant also has a “Ghost Bar” where you can view pictures of Annette Williamson. Genre artist William Sidney Mount was said to have attended séances there when it was known as the Thomas Hadaway House.
Lake Ronkonkoma, Lake Shore Road, Lake Ronkonkoma: One of the most frequent tales you hear about Lake Ronkonkoma is one involving a Native American princess who died at the lake in the mid-1600s. The story goes that the Native American princess fell in love with an Englishman named Hugh Birdsall. He lived across the lake, but her father would not permit her to pursue a romance with the Englishman. Legends say that the heartbroken princess killed herself because she could not be with her true love.
Folklore then goes on to say that every year since, in a desperate search for a soulmate in death, the princess takes a young male’s life. Lake Ronkonkoma is rumored to have no bottom, just an endless abyss of darkness. The lake itself is the largest lake on Long Island and it would be impossible for a human being to reach the bottom without assistance since it is 100 feet (30 m) at its southeastern side. Something that feeds into this tale is how the water level of Lake Ronkonkoma seems to rise and fall with no relation to rainfall, something that adds to the mystery. Michael R. Ebert, author of “The Curse of Lake Ronkonkoma,” delved into these allegations and found that, “One study showed that over 7 years in the early 1900s, the rainfall on Long Island was below the usual average by about 52 inches, yet the lake rose 7 feet.”
Another eerie oddity about Lake Ronkonkoma is about the bodies of people who have drowned in the lake. Bodies have been found washed up in Connecticut and out in the Long Island Sound, fueling claims that Lake Ronkonkoma has many hidden caverns, passageways and tunnels leading to different locations. Other bodies have never been found.
Centereach High School, located at 14 43rd Street, has limited access for the public. Some believe that the bleachers of Centereach High School are haunted by James Halversen, a New York City firefighter who used to run at the track every day. At 8:00 p.m. on Jan. 5, 1997, Halversen and his dog were shot. Some people can feel his presence or even a man running on the fifth lane of the track. Some say they also have seen a glowing object in the northeast corner of the track.
Katie’s of Smithtown is located at 145 West Main Street. Katie’s is a popular bar in Smithtown and home to a ghost named Charlie, who is said to have been a bartender and bootlegger during the 1920s. After committing suicide, he is said to frequently visit the bar. Many patrons have felt or seen him. Some have seen people in 19th century dress in the bar, and the figure of a woman has been seen walking up and down the bar and down the basement stairs. Women have reported toilet seats jumping open and making banging sounds when no one else is in the bathroom, and footsteps have also been heard coming from the basement when it is unoccupied. Glasses have also been known to fly off the bar and tables.
And last, but not least, the Port Jefferson Ferries are believed by many that a ghost haunts the ferries as they travel the Sound. Many riders have seen the ghost of a former captain who wears a weathered uniform.
Yow-Ning Chang of East Setauket is TBR's 3rd Adult Coloring Contest Grand Prize Winner!
By Heidi Sutton
Dear Readers, We recently held our second adult coloring contest, asking adults 21 and over to color in Karin Bagan’s nautical-themed graphic and the response was overwhelming! We received many colorful entries from readers all along the North Shore who used many different types of mediums, including colored pencils, markers, paint, stickers and glitter to create their masterpieces.
Along with her online entry, Laura Star of Setauket commented, “This was fun! I’m going to hang [the coloring page] on my fridge, alongside the kids’ works! And why not?” Why not indeed!
Although it was extremely difficult to choose a winner as every entry was unique in its own way, our three judges, Port Times Record Editor Alex Petroski, Managing Editor Desirée Keegan and intern Nicole Geddes, ultimately decided that Yow-Ning Chang’s interpretation stood out above the rest.
“We selected this particular coloring page because, in addition to the appealing pastel colors, the artist’s interpretation looked like it was sent by sea as a message in a bottle,” stated the judges, adding, “It was the perfect blend of bright and colorful along with a weathered, parchment feel that distinguished itself from so many other great submissions and gave it a unique element of texture. The combination was too catching to be denied.”
The East Setauket resident will receive a three-year subscription to the Times Beacon Record. All other entries will receive a one-year subscription. Thanks to all who entered and for sharing your talents with us!
Peter Magistrale speaks in support of the Child Victims Act at a rally in St. James. Photo by Ted Ryan
By Ted Ryan and Victoria Espinoza
Residents of the North Shore gathered at Veterans Memorial Park in St. James Oct. 15, to raise awareness of sexual abuse of children in New York state.
Democratic candidate for the state Senate race in the 2nd District, Peter Magistrale, hosted the rally. He is advocating for a change to the current statute of limitations that restricts when a child rape victim can come forward with a civil or criminal case against their abuser.
In New York, once victims turn 23 they can no longer make a case for child abuse against the predator in question.
According to research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of four girls and one in six boys are sexually abused before the age of 18. In addition, the National Center for Victims of Crime said 14 percent of sexual offenders commit another sexual offense after five years, and 24 percent after 15 years.
The National Sex Offender Public Website stated children usually delay telling someone if they have been sexually abused because they are either afraid of a negative reaction from their parents or of being harmed by the abuser. The website indicated kids often “delay disclosure until adulthood.”
Magistrale said he thinks the restriction is unjust and wants to turn the tide on child abusers by removing the statute of limitations through the Child Victims Act. The bill would eliminate both criminal and civil statutes of limitation for child sexual abuse, and provide a one-time, one-year window in the statute of limitations to enable victims whose claim was time-barred by the current arbitrary limitations to revive their claim.
A similar version of this bill failed to make it past the state Senate floor during the legislative session this past June.
“A kid takes on average 21 years to come forward [to admit they were abused],” Magistrale said at the rally. “The average age that a child is raped is 8 or 9. By the time they build the courage and get over their psychological scars, time is up. We have to pass the Child Victims Act to do two things: Lift the statute of limitations completely, and then give a one-year look back window for people who were abused and unable to come forward in the past to point out who did it to them so we get them [the predators] off the street as well.”
Several victims of child abuse spoke at the rally, as well as members of anti-child abuse organizations. They told their stories of the abuse and their subsequent frustration with the restrictive statute.
Among the speakers was Melanie Blow, COO of the Stop Abuse Campaign.
“It’s simply ridiculous it’s taken us 10 years to pass the most significant bill to prevent child abuse,” Blow said. “But we’ve got survivors coming together right now to get the word out, to tell parents that this is an issue, and this piece of legislation will help.”
John De Vito, Democratic candidate for the state Senate’s 3rd district, also spoke at the rally.
“So many people here who are victims of sexual violence might never have a day in court to seek justice,” De Vito said. “But if we pass the Child Victims Act, our children will be awarded that opportunity going forward.”
During an interview at TBR News Media’s office in East Setauket, state Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R-East Northport) said he agreed with Magistrale, who he is running against for re-election in the 2nd District, that this is an important issue but he does not support the legislation.
“There are significant protections in the law right now,” he said. “This is a one-year opener that could bring cases going back 40, 50, 60 years. We have statute of limitations for very cogent reasons and no matter how emotional a subject may be, witness availability, evidence, all those things have a salutary effect in terms of what happens.”
Suffolk County Legislator Steve Stern. File photo by Rohma Abbas
A victory was gained in the fight against opioid abuse this month, as the Suffolk County Legislature unanimously approved a new bill that prohibits the sale and possession of U-47700, a highly addictive synthetic opioid drug.
“We must protect our young people from synthetic opioids like U-47700 that we know lead to addiction, graduation to heroin and potential death.” —Steve Stern
The pink pill contains fentanyl, another addictive and dangerous opioid, and is resistant to treatment with Narcan, a drug used to revive people who have overdosed.
Suffolk County Legislator Steve Stern (D-Dix Hills) created the bill, which passed Oct. 5.
“We must do everything in our power to protect our young people from synthetic opioids like U-47700 that we know lead to addiction, serious health effects, graduation to heroin and potential death,” Stern said in a statement.
Stern’s office said U-47700 was originally developed by the pharmaceutical industry as an alternative to morphine but was never marketed when it was determined to be more than eight times as potent as morphine. The drug is manufactured overseas, mainly in China and is sold at a low cost on the internet, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
It can be smoked, snorted or orally ingested and can cause respiratory depression, coma, permanent brain damage and death.The DEA temporarily listed the drug on Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act in September because of the imminent hazard it presents to public safety.
Schedule I drugs have a high potential for abuse, are not currently accepted for medical use in the U.S. and are deemed unsafe even under medical supervision. Other drugs in the Schedule I list include heroin, LSD and ecstasy.
Many states, including Georgia, Ohio and Wyoming, have banned the drug.
The DEA confirmed at least 15 fatalities from the use of U-47700, and according to news sources, at least 50 deaths nationwide can be linked to the drug.
According to the bill, any person who knowingly violates the law will be guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to one year of imprisonment. The law goes into effect immediately after the Office of the Secretary of State files it.
The legislation to prohibit its sale was supported by the entire legislature, as well as Health Commissioner James Tomarken and Police Commissioner Tim Sini.
“I thank my colleagues on the Legislature for joining me in taking meaningful action to protect the health and safety of our communities,” Stern said.
Nurses and their supporters picket outside St. Charles Hospital on April 8, calling for higher staffing levels and encouraging passing drivers to honk in solidarity. Photo by Giselle Barkley
By Alex Petroski
Registered nurses at St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown and St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson have been working without a contract since March 2015, but they may be nearing a tipping point.
Nurses from both hospitals voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike this week, according to a statement dated Oct. 17 from the New York State Nurses Association, a union that represents about 40,000 registered nurses in the state.
Nurses and their supporters picket outside St. Charles Hospital on April 8, calling for higher staffing levels and encouraging passing drivers to honk in solidarity. Photo by Giselle Barkley
“We are very frustrated with management,” Tracy Kosciuk, a St. Charles nurse in the maternal child unit who has been with the hospital for nearly three decades, said in a statement. Kosciuk is also the president of the union’s executive committee for St. Charles. “We feel a total lack of respect. Our community appreciates our dedication and management should too.”
Spokespersons from both hospitals responded to the union’s actions in emailed statements.
“We are working diligently to resolve all issues and have made great progress toward that goal,” separate statements from St. Charles executive director for public and external affairs, Marilyn Fabbricante, and St. Catherine’s executive vice president and chief administrative officer, Paul Rowland, each said. “We look forward to a mutually satisfactory collective bargaining agreement which rewards our nurses and meets the needs of our hospitals.”
Fabbricante added that St. Charles has not yet been informed by the union of plans to go on strike. Carl Ginsburg, a spokesman for the union, said they have strike authorizations from members at both hospitals, though negotiations are ongoing and no dates have been determined for the strikes. Unions are required to give health care institutions at least 10 days notice prior to a strike, according to the National Labor Relations Board — and Ginsburg said that had not yet occurred.
According to the release from the union, its members are frustrated by inadequate staffing and are seeking better health benefits and a pay increase in their next contract. In 1995, performance of nurses and other health care professionals became subject to ratings based on patient surveys conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, according to its website.
“You can’t have two people lifting a patient all the time…When people are going out with back injuries, then [hospital administration members] wonder why.”
—Dawn Bailey
“All of these issues affect retention and recruitment,” Tammy Miller, a nurse at St. Catherine of Siena, said in a statement. “Keeping and attracting experienced nurses are essential to quality care.”
Dawn Bailey, a registered nurse and labor bargaining unit executive committee member of the NYS Nurses Association, said during a picket outside the Smithtown medical center in April that working a shift without adequate staff can be dangerous not only for patients, but for nurses as well, on top of the potential damage it can do to ratings.
“You can’t have two people lifting a patient all the time because there’s not that other person available,” Bailey said. “When people are going out with back injuries, then [members of hospital administration] wonder why.”
Kosciuk expressed a similar sentiment during a picket in April.
“Unfortunately the mentality … nowadays in the industry is [that] all hospitals are short staffed,” she said. “That’s not acceptable to have that mind-set.”
Victoria Espinoza contributed reporting for this story.
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