Call off guidelines

[MKS8806]

My unit is discussing possibly changing the ways that we currently do call offs. This is our current procedure:

1. Those that have signed up extra get called off first

2. Anyone that has requested a call off next

3. Then, PRN people get called off

4. Call off by hours - the RN(s) with the least number of hours gets called of next.

a. If there is a tie in hours, the RN that was called of longest ago is called off first

5. At the beginning of a new month, all RNs are started over at 0 and the RN called off longest ago, is the first to get called off.

There is some question as to why we are starting over each month. Some don't think its fair, because, regardless of the amount of call off hours they had the previous month, they start over at 0 each month, and, in turn, they may get called off more over a year than other employees. So should we make our call off guidelines stretch for more than a month?

Then there is question on how to handle new employees. Clearly the fairest method is the monthly method for them. Otherwise, they are going to get called off a lot in order to "catch up" on the hours everyone else has.

And preceptors...should they get called off? Could it be an incentive to be a preceptor if you don't have to get called off? I think this could be a good idea, however, if we changed to a longer term or even a yearly term, the preceptor would end up having to "make up" those hours they didn't have to take previously. So, it would be fairest, if we offer the incetive, to stick with the monthly terms.

I know there are pros and cons either way and no matter which way you go, someone is going to be upset. I understand that. I was just curious what other units in other hospitals do. Are there other ideas we could be considering.

Thanks!

[NicuGal, MSN, RN]

1. OT for the day

2. ET for the day

3. Retired PRN (we have a retired RN program)

4. PRN

If after all that we still have extras we go by a list we keep with cancel dates written in it.

If no one wants cancelled then we mandatory cancel by least senior, but we keep dates on that and only cancel in 4 hour blocks unles the person opts to take the whole shift.

[MKS8806]

I appreciate all the responses!! For those of you that use the days methods - do you every have a problem with someone saying they have more hours than someone else? Because, sometimes you may not get called off the full shift, or you get called back in....so you get, say, 5 hours of call off time. The next person gets a full 12 hours of call off time. Does that ever seem to be a problem?

Im not sure I understood correctly, any ideas about preceptors? Do you call off the preceptor to a newbie, or are they "safe" until the next round? We obviously do not call off newbies.

[Aurora77]

Our policy:

1. Those who would be on OT get called off first.

2. PRNs next

3. FT/PT people based on last time called off (the person it's been the longest for gets called off first).

Unofficially, if someone wants to be first on call and the charge knows it, she'll try to help out that person. We're a small unit, so it seems to be effective.

[Mandychelle79, ASN, RN]

I appreciate all the responses!! For those of you that use the days methods - do you every have a problem with someone saying they have more hours than someone else? Because, sometimes you may not get called off the full shift, or you get called back in....so you get, say, 5 hours of call off time. The next person gets a full 12 hours of call off time. Does that ever seem to be a problem?

Im not sure I understood correctly, any ideas about preceptors? Do you call off the preceptor to a newbie, or are they "safe" until the next round? We obviously do not call off newbies.

It is usually in 4 hour increments, but if you are volunteering to stay home they normally stay the whole day. Anything under 4 hours does not count as a staff down day ( unless you work an odd shift like a 10 hour one, then if you are staffed down the first 2 hours that counts)