A new round of contract negotiations between the Michigan Nurses Association and Sparrow Health System began Wednesday after a vote to authorize a strike was issued earlier this month.

The contract expired Oct. 31 and negotiations ended the following day, leaving 1,800 health care professionals - which include nurses, psychologists and pharmacists - without a contract and with several issues remaining unresolved. But both sides say they hope a new contract will be drawn up successfully.

Sparrow Health System spokeswoman Lorri Rishar said the focus at this point is on resolving the contract, not on a potential strike.

"We hope to resolve, with certainty, a successful contract that both sides feel is fair and equitable and that reflects Sparrow's belief in the strength and quality of our nurses," Rishar said.

Sparrow is the only locally owned and operated health system in Lansing and the hospital is fiscally responsible to the community, Rishar said.

With limited resources, funding has to be allocated appropriately, she added.

The possibility of a work stoppage is present each time a contract is negotiated, Rishar said.

"Every time it gets near the deadline, this becomes a possibility," she said. "But we've never had a work stoppage, and we don't anticipate one now."

Pre-nursing sophomore Kyra Smith said the idea of a possible work stoppage concerns her.

"There's already a shortage of nurses and if they leave, (patients) won't have people to take care of them," Smith said. "You'd have to rush in people to help take care of them. You'd get a lot of inexperienced people working."

But in the event that an agreement is not met, Sparrow would have plans in place to bring in nurses from the community and even the nation to care for the patients, Rishar said, adding that the quality of care would remain the same.

Details specific to the contract could not be disclosed because negotiations are still ongoing, representatives from Sparrow and the Michigan Nurses Association said.

However, certain issues that remained unsettled after initial negotiations ended Nov. 1 include patient safety, health and safety in the workplace and training, as well as economic concerns such as wages, benefits and pensions, according to a statement released by the association.

Patient safety can include a number of different issues, such as the number of patients assigned to a nurse and being transferred between floors without additional training, said Carol Feuss, director of communication and integrated marketing for the association.

Negotiations are scheduled for today as well, Feuss said.

"They're obviously committed to coming up with an agreement that works," she said. "We're back to the table, which is always a good sign, and that's all you can ever guess. You never know how these things are going to go."