Kapiolani Medical Center nurse lockout forces family to flee

    HONOLULU (KITV) -- Since he was born, baby Kaloa has been in Kapiolani Medical Center. But ever since the hospital locked out its nurses, replacing them with temporary hires, his mother Anna Miles said it's been a nightmare.

"The nurses were careless," she said. "The nurses were not knowledgeable on just the simple things."

Despite what will be a hefty price tag, she decided to transfer the 11 week old thousands of miles away to Stanford Medical Center.

"On top of the hospital bills, now we have travel bills and, you know, we have to still pay our rent, we still have to pay our bills," she added.

Kaloa was born premature with a heart condition that's worsening.

"I would come in and he would be crying and I don't know where the nurse is," Miles said. "I would just worry 24-7 more than I already worry about my child."

After Island News reported the death of Ava Agbayani whose family believes the temporary nurses weren't attentive to her needs, Anna said enough is enough.

Anna lost her first baby after giving birth in 2023 and is taking every precaution for Kaloa.

"It really breaks my heart, not only for my child, but all the other children that are still getting this horrendous care," she said.

Kaloa was transferred just days ago and Anna said she's already seeing a huge difference.

"I definitely can see clearly that the ratios matter," she said. "We've just been receiving amazing care here. They hold him, they put him in a swing, they talk to him. As soon as his monitors go off, they're right there. It's just a night-and-day difference."

Kapiolani nurses said they're fighting for better nurse-to-patient ratios to improve care.

The hospital said it's also receiving positive comments about the temporary nurses working alongside doctors and other health care providers to care for patients.