"For us, we're on hold until she comes back," said Richard Aea, hospital spokesman.

As the strike entered its third day today, nurse managers continued to fill in for strikers at the 162-bed hospital, Aea said. He said three nurses crossed the picket line yesterday, but the hospital was mostly maintaining "business as usual."

"People are still coming," he said today. "Operations are normal as much as possible."

Some Central O'ahu and North Shore residents may find themselves postponing surgery or having babies at other hospitals.

Aea said doctors who had been planning to deliver babies at Wahiawa are being advised that they may want to go to another hospital. He said the hospital is delivering babies "if it's an emergency," but "we don't have a full staff here."

Aea said the hospital postponed elective surgery, but its emergency room and outpatient services such as X-ray, rehab and lab work ran smoothly. The long-term-care unit is not affected by the strike because no registered nurses work there.

Hospital administrators and the Hawai'i Nurses Association last met with a federal mediator last Wednesday, but the negotiations ended when the hospital rejected a proposal from the union.

About two dozen nurses walked the lines today, said Randy Pisani, the hospital's recovery room nurse and one of the negotiators.

"We're still persevering," Pisani said. "Our spirits are still high. We're hoping for the best."

In December, nearly 1,400 nurses at three major Honolulu hospitals went on strike for nearly six weeks.

For those nurses at Queen's, Kuakini and St. Francis medical centers, the dispute focused on working conditions that included staffing issues, mandatory overtime and sick leave/paid time off benefits.

At Wahiawa, the union said the key issue is a proposed cut in benefits that would undermine a proposed pay increase. The union said the proposed pay raise would be offset if the union accepts a management proposal to have nurses pay a bigger share of their medical costs.

But management said employees still would receive an overall increase in compensation.