RNs say deteriorating hospital conditions are affecting patient safety 

Nurses at Sharp Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside, Calif., will hold an informational picket on Tuesday, Sept. 22, to protest Sharp HealthCare’s broken promises to their patients and community. Nurses at the facility are represented by California Nurses Association (CNA).

“Our increase in patients in both the inpatient and outpatient units is now a cause for concern because management is not providing safe staffing and resources to ensure patient safety at all times,” said Astrid Warner, an infusion nurse and member of the nurse-led Professional Practice Committee at the hospital.

Who: Nurses from Sharp Tri-City Medical Center
What: Informational picket to demand accountability
When: Tuesday, Sept. 22, 6 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
Where: Sharp Tri-City Medical Center, 4002 Vista Way, Oceanside, Calif.; on the lawn area near the main lobby hospital entrance

“Even as SHARP prepares to reopen the women’s services units that were shuttered in 2018, conditions throughout the rest of the hospital are becoming untenable,” said Ingrid Corona, RN in telemetry and the facility’s Chief Nurse Representative with the California Nurses Association. “We have instances where our own pregnant nurses’ health is being jeopardized by lack of break coverage. My co-worker is an expectant mom, but she can’t get her rest and meal breaks during a 12-hour shift. This is completely unacceptable! Sharp must act now to prevent harm to this community’s health workers and patients.” 

During the 2026 Measure H campaign, Sharp HealthCare promised to address nurses’ patient care concerns, including maintaining care standards and committing to recruiting and retaining nurses. Instead, management has delayed hiring new nurses and made cuts at the bedside that are sharp departures from the publicly announced commitments.

Nurses say that the combination of unsafe staffing and increasing census means more patients can experience care delays. Among the concerns cited by nurses are:

• Nurses are being asked to walk away from bedside care assignments to complete standard education and policy modules online, while at work.
• Nurses are not provided with rest and meal breaks.
• SHARP management is trying to eliminate lift team staff, which may cause an increase to injury to nurses and delay care for patients.

CNA, an affiliate of National Nurses United (NNU), represents 500 nurses at Sharp Tri-City Medical Center.

California Nurses Association/National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the nation with more than 100,000 members in more than 200 facilities throughout California and more than 225,000 RNs nationwide.