Houlton Regional Hospital nurses continue to strike over staffing levels

Source: Spectrum News

BY David Ledford Maine
PUBLISHED 2:14 PM ET May 28, 2026

HOULTON — Registered nurses at Houlton Regional Hospital are nearing the end of a four-day strike over staffing levels.

They are asking management to staff at least three nurses in the emergency department at all times. Nurses said having less than that poses a safety risk.

“At night, if there’s only two nurses in and a critical patient comes in, sometimes that requires both nurses to be in the room with that patient,” said Erin Mitchell, an ER nurse at the hospital. “So then the other patients that are in the ER aren’t seeing that nurse or any nurse while the nurses are tied up in another room.”

Nurses have been walking the picket line since Tuesday. Hospital management said the strike comes after the parties had already mutually agreed to use a mediator to reach a contract agreement.


Registered nurses hold signs and ring bells along North Street in Houlton to voice concerns over staffing levels at Houlton Regional Hospital. (Spectrum News/David Ledford)

Read more: https://spectrumlocalnews.com/me/maine/health/2026/05/28/houlton-regional-hospital-nurses-continue-to-strike-over-staffing-levels