Hundreds of physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners at the Legacy and Indigo urgent care centers and Auburn Medical Center (AMC) in Tacoma, Washington are standing together to protect the health and wellbeing of Tacoma residents, and improve deteriorating working conditions for healthcare providers.

The three units, all members of the Union of American Physicians and Dentists (UAPD), have been bargaining with MultiCare, the $2.4 billion-a-year healthcare corporation that owns Legacy, Indigo and AMC, since June 2017, but the company has yet to address the providers’ serious concerns regarding patient care and staff safety. After coming to the table multiple times it’s become clear that MultiCare has not been bargaining in good faith on these issues.

Citing practices that “put profit before patient care,” UAPD members are demanding that the healthcare giant address policies that impact patient care such as staff retention, inadequate staffing levels and consistently overworked staff. These issues have led to astronomical turnover rates, unpredictable facility closures and chronic short staffing. All are contributing factors to what providers see as a declining standard of care in MultiCare facilities.

Providers will be holding MultiCare accountable both at the facilities and in a growing social media campaign.