Legacy Health doctors at the provider’s Portland-area women’s health clinics say they are unionizing.
The 17 doctors have filed authorization cards to vote on joining the Pacific Northwest Hospital Medicine Association.
The news comes after multiple shakeups in the region’s hospital services, including an impending merger of the two largest systems, Legacy Health and Oregon Health & Science University. The merger has spurred unionizing efforts among many of Legacy’s employees.
And earlier this year, Legacy tried to close its family birth center in Gresham, though the state blocked that from happening.
The women’s health clinic doctors say hospital leaders are prioritizing profits over care, and that unionizing will help add protections for both staff and patients.
“We are forming a union to put protections in place to ensure that high-quality, community-focused care remains the standard for birthing families and patients with gynecologic needs in East Multnomah County and across the Legacy Health system,” Dr. Britta Ameel of Legacy Medical Group-Mount Hood Women’s Health said in a written statement.
