Wichita nurses plan one-day strike over safety concerns

Nurses at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis and St. Joseph hospitals in Wichita, Kansas, plan a one-day strike on July 6, saying hospital leaders have not adequately addressed concerns about patient safety and protection from workplace violence during contract talks.

The strike announcement came from National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United. The group said the action follows a fatal shooting at St. Joseph this week, which nurses say reinforces the risks they have been warning about for some time. According to the release, nurses have seen a rise in workplace violence against staff and too many threats involving both patients and employees.

The press release said recent incidents have included a grenade found on Easter and, on June 21, a fatal shooting in the St. Joseph emergency department. The union said registered nurses have repeatedly asked Ascension to treat workplace violence protections as a serious bargaining issue and to put in place practical steps to help protect both staff and patients.

“We have been sounding the alarm and calling for weapons detection systems for years, but the administration has refused to listen,” said Carol Samsel, RN in the critical care unit at St. Joseph. She added that what happened in the emergency department this week was a tragedy.

The notice says the strike will involve registered nurses at both Ascension Via Christi St. Francis and St. Joseph hospitals. It is scheduled to begin Monday, July 6, at 7 a.m. and continue until Tuesday, July 7, at 6:59 a.m. Nurses said the location of the action will be St. Francis Hospital, 929 N. St. Francis St., at the northeast corner of Murdock and St. Francis, and St. Joseph Hospital, 3600 E. Harry St., at the northeast corner of Harry and Clifton.

The union said the strike notice came after a nearly unanimous strike authorization vote on June 23 at both hospitals. It also said nurses gave hospital management 10 days’ advance notice so that plans could be made for patient care during the one-day strike.

Negotiations between nurses and hospital management have been underway since March 2026, according to the release. The union said there has been little to no movement on major issues, including safe staffing and workplace protections. Nurses are calling for enforceable contract language covering workplace violence protection measures, safe staffing, and retention of experienced registered nurses.

“Nurses and other health care workers should not feel scared to come to work at our hospitals,” said Shelly Rader, RN in the emergency department at St. Francis. “Our hospitals should be places of refuge and healing for our patients.”

Marvin Ruckle, an RN in the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Joseph, said the union wants Ascension to act before another tragedy occurs. He called on the company to provide for the safety of patients and staff.

The release said nurses at the two Wichita hospitals unionized in 2022 and 2023 and won a first contract in 2024. It also said nurses held an informational picket at St. Francis on May 1, 2026, during the ongoing negotiations.

NNOC/NNU said it represents nearly 1,200 nurses at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis and St. Joseph. National Nurses United described itself as the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States, with more than 225,000 members nationwide. The group said its affiliates include the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.