Nurses test Colorado whistle-blower law

DENVER, June 17 (UPI) -- Three nurses are testing a new Colorado "whistle-blower" law, saying they were fired for exposing allegedly unsafe infant care, attorneys say.

Penelope Clor, attorney for the three former nurses at Denver's Swedish Medical Center, says the women were dismissed after complaining to their superiors about what they say was substandard care for premature babies, including an alleged incident in which a pacifier was taped to a baby's mouth, The Denver Post reported Wednesday.

The supervisory "charge nurses" in the intensive-care nursery "were met with a brick wall" from Swedish Medical Center supervisors when they alleged the hospital lacked enough "level three" nurses with necessary skills, Clor told the newspaper.

They were later fired, triggering the first lawsuit under a 2007 Colorado law that protects healthcare workers who "blow the whistle" on allegedly dangerous conditions, the Post said.

Hospital officials denied the allegations, saying the facility "does not discriminate against its employees nor does it retaliate against them."