By Crissy Pascual on Apr 15, 2026

Petaluma Valley Hospital Nurses Hold Informational Picket

Laquardra Staples, who works as a registered nurse in the Intensive Care Unit at Petaluma Valley Hospital, takes part in an informational picket on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. The call to action by the nurses' union, Petaluma Staff Nurse Partnership, is not a strike but a picket intended to call attention to their contract negotiations with owner Providence St. Joseph Health for fair wages, reliable paychecks, and retirement benefits. Their current contract expired. Staples, who goes by the nickname Q, says she is fighting to be able to afford to stay in Petaluma, where she moved from Georgia two years ago. “I don’t want to have to choose between leaving and staying in this community and a hospital that I’ve really grown to love.” CRISSY PASCUAL/PETALUMA VOICE ©2026

A photo essay

Natalie Hernandez (photo on left), a certified nursing assistant at Petaluma Valley Hospital, encourages passing vehicles on North McDowell Boulevard to honk their horns and show support for nurses marching outside the hospital on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, in an informational picket. CRISSY PASCUAL/PETALUMA VOICE ©2026

Photos by CRISSY PASCUAL/PETALUMA VOICE ©2026

Allison Arnold (far left) is accompanied by her daughter Amelia, 10, during a picket outside Petaluma Valley Hospital on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. Arnold said one of the best educations she could give to her daughter is to teach her about standing up for herself. “If we don’t show up we will get stepped on.” CRISSY PASCUAL/PETALUMA VOICE ©2026

Nurse case manager Catherine Canto (photo on left), who has been at Petaluma Valley Hospital for five years, says she loves working there and that it is a great community hospital where patients can feel that love. She says she marches because she wants Providence to recognize that their nurses are the lowest-paid in the county and deserve better. CRISSY PASCUAL/PETALUMA VOICE ©2026

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