Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez

President
NYSNA

A New York City native, President Sheridan-Gonzalez, RN, dedicated more than 30 years to emergency treatment in the Adult Emergency Department of Montefiore Medical Center, the largest healthcare facility in the Bronx. There, she served patients from underserved communities, including communities of color and from the Hispanic population of the area.

In 2011, Sheridan-Gonzalez, building on support of nurses at Montefiore, successfully led a slate of candidates in union-wide elections that has since transformed the NYSNA in fundamental ways.

As president of NYSNA – the largest association and union of registered nurses in New York State, with 40,000 members – Sheridan-Gonzalez significantly advanced efforts to protect nurse advocacy in hospitals across the state, including efforts for quality patient care through safe RN staffing levels and in protecting RN work environments overall.

Under her leadership, the union has embraced a broad and progressive effort in behalf of the public’s health, defining healthcare as a human right and calling for systems in New York State and throughout the nation that give priority to patient care – patients over profits, referred to as single payer, Medicare for All. Sheridan-Gonzalez has spearheaded the union’s climate justice movement in the U.S. and internationally, including the involvement of growing numbers of rank-and-file nurses.

Social justice and civil rights have also informed her agenda, as nurses have banded with other community, religious and public health organizations to create a fairer and more equitable society. Foremost in her work with a coalition of forces, she has sought to protect the role of unions in New York State, the U.S. and in nations around the world.