New Brunswick, N.J., Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital's heart transplant team successfully performed a heart transplant in the first 24 hours of a nurses strike.
The 52-year-old patient received the heart Aug. 4 and had a 10-day stay in the cardiovascular in-patient unit, according to an Aug. 29 news release from West Orange, N.J.-based RWJBarnabas Health.
"Performing this successful heart transplant demonstrates our team's ability to provide uninterrupted, high-quality care and address the most medically complex cases during the nursing strike," Andy Anderson, MD, chief medical and quality officer for RWJBarnabas Health and the hospital, said in the release.
The nurses union authorized a 10-day strike July 11 after the union's contract expired in late June, and nurses went on strike Aug. 4. The union has said it seeks a contract that provides safe staffing standards, living wages and quality, affordable healthcare.