Resident physicians affiliated with George Washington University Hospital reached a tentative agreement late Monday, averting a three-day strike that was set to go into effect at 6 a.m. Tuesday.

The agreement came to fruition after more than a year of talks. Negotiators worked to secure better pay and improved mental health support for about 500 resident doctors unionized with the Committee of Interns and Residents.

The development marks the first contract win for the union.

The tentative deal, according to the union, includes both substantial pay increases and a $1,000 annual stipend for mental health and physician wellness. A $4,000 ratification bonus is also included in the agreement.

Doctors who were ready to join the picket line previously highlighted their struggles with rampant burnouts, extreme exhaustion and financial stress, the union said.

“This contract has been such a long time coming and it’s truly a historic step not only for our well-being, but for the health of the community we serve,” said Dr. Jason Robart, a resident in anesthesiology at GW Hospital, in a statement.

“This contract is the result of 2.5 years of effort, since before we even won our union. Every person who signed a union card or a petition, every chant, every sign we held up outside the hospital, and even our willingness to withhold our labor — that’s what allowed us to win a contract that will truly transform our lives.”

Eleanor Clifford, an OB-GYN resident, added that the hundreds of doctors were willing to strike in order to get “GW to finally acknowledge the support that we need in order to take care of ourselves and our mental health.”

“We were willing to strike because, ultimately, we know that we can’t provide the compassionate patient care that we want to provide on willpower alone,” she said. “We are incredibly hardworking, but we are also human.”

WTOP has reached out to GW Hospital and the Committee of Interns and Residents for additional details.

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A girl “believed to be five years old” is in critical condition at a D.C. hospital for a gunshot wound in the presence of her younger brother Monday night, police said.

D.C. police Chief Pamela Smith said officers were called to a report of a shooting at an apartment in the unit block of Galveston Street in Southwest around 6:30 p.m.

She said officers found “a young female victim, believed to be five years old” shot in the upper-body and immediately provided first aid before emergency crews rushed her to a hospital.

Smith said the girl was “injured after a younger child accessed an unsecured firearm in the apartment,” adding that the younger child is “roughly around three years old.”

“This incident really highlights the danger of unsecured firearms in homes, especially around children,” Smith said.

According to police, the children were left with an adult man, considered to be a friend of the family inside the apartment. The man was tasked with watching and caring for the children while their mother was running errands.

Smith said an adult female, believed to be a sister of the female victim, was arrested for assaulting a special police officer working at the apartment complex where the shooting happened.

Below is a map of where the shooting took place.

This is a developing story. Stay with WTOP for the latest.

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As leaders in Congress race to finish up this session’s legislative work, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said she was “hopeful” that a bill giving the District control of the federally-owned land that the RFK Stadium sits on would pass by the end of the week.

The legislation has already passed in the House and through a Senate committee, paving the way for a vote in the full Senate.

If D.C. were to get control of the site, the city could redevelop the area, and it would be viewed as a major advantage for the District in potentially getting the Washington Commanders to play there.

The Commanders have a lease at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, that runs through 2027, and the team is looking around for a new home.

“D.C. has done everything in our power to move this legislation through the process,” Bowser said on Monday. “The taxpayers of the District are willing to step up and put that land back into productive use.”

Supporters of the legislation, including the mayor, expect the bill to be added to a much broader, short-term spending bill that must be approved this week on Capitol Hill to avoid a government shutdown before the holidays.

The spending bill needs to pass through the House and Senate by Friday at midnight.

“My job is to make sure that after many, many years and a lot of hard work, that the vision that we have for that land best serves D.C. residents,” Bowser said. “We’re hopeful that … they vote on it this week.”

The RFK Stadium legislation has hit snags during negotiations, particularly because Maryland lawmakers have been working to secure a guarantee that the Landover site would be redeveloped if the team did decide to move elsewhere.

In a recent interview with WTOP, Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin said his “first priority” was not to redevelop the Landover site, but to keep the Commanders in Maryland.

“We believe in fair competition, and one of our concerns is that to give the District access to the RFK site without compensation tilts the scale in favor of D.C. over Maryland, which is something Congress should not do,” Cardin said. “I’ve always been very supportive of the needs of the District, and we want to make sure that we give them what they need, but we don’t want to tilt the scale.”

Asked whether she thought Maryland lawmakers were unfairly holding up the deal, Bowser said, “I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt that we’re all working in good faith to do what’s right for both of our jurisdictions … I think with what’s on the table, we have a winning solution for D.C. and for Maryland.”

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