Called Off for Low Census!!!

[BlearnRN]

For the last couple of weeks our pt census on our floor has been low. It sucks, not much to do, low acuity. I did in the beginning welcome the extra day at home and the longer bouts of down time. But now, I am 19 hours short on my next paycheck!!!. I have been called off 2 shifts and then today called off for 3 hours ---This sucks. I would ask to be floated to another dept but, I am 9 mo pregnant. I don't think another unit would welcome me right now. So I am stuck with short hours.

[nightmare, RN]

9 months pregnant? Shouldn't you be on maternity leave!?

[BlearnRN]

correction 38 weeks about 9 months - no not on maternity leave yet. working up to the last minute, we do not get paid maternity leave.

[SDS_RN, RN]

I don't know how your facility is but we can use our PTO time to fill in our low census hours if we want to.

[Dolce, RN]

Most units rotate low census among staff. I hope that everyone else is taking their fare share of low census. If not they could be discriminating against you during your pregnancy.

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

I don't know how your facility is but we can use our PTO time to fill in our low census hours if we want to.

Exactally. My unit is also operating on low census, and we can use PTO time on days we get called off to make up our pay. I can't imagine getting called off with out pay or being able to go work on another floor. And no pay for materinty leave

[BookwormRN]

We, too can use PTO to cover our low count/on-call days.

I like our system, because the Supervisor can only make us take one shift off a payperiod. If they call you for a second low-count/on-call shift, you can refuse it and go in to work on "Projects" like Healthstream, chart audits, etc...

[bethin]

I know how you feel. Two summers ago our med surg floor was incredibly slow. We are a 29 bed unit but we would have 5 patients top at one time all summer.

At this time I was weekend option and being called off for the entire weekend. Sure, I could use PTO but that doesn't last forever.

[Toph McGee]

I'm going through the same thing except we are going through low census after closing my original unit and combining us with another medical unit which has double occupancy rooms (my original unit only had singles except for one double room that was rarely used). But even with the merger they are still experiencing low census and people are getting sick of using PTO and we are all getting sick of floating & being on another unit. I mean I have barely any PTO as it is + working 12s = a big chunk out of my PTO bank. Luckily we are rolling out with some new patient centered care initiatives so on overstaffed days I get selected to be an educator (aka doing bs work)

[OC_An Khe]

Our union contract doesn't allow for low census call offs. If you are scheduled to work (in a non PRN position, or OT) you must get paid for all time scheduled. For example if you are hired full time 40/hr per pay period you are guaranteed 40 hours, part time same thing. Only PRN can be called off.

[suni, BSN, RN]

we also get called off for low census, we can use PTO time if we choose to do, we also are put on call so we can get called in for any unit in the hospital, with the exception of PEDS and OB.

It is interesting to me that this is not just regional but apparantly happening across the country.

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

That's so different from what's happening here! Our census is high and has been for months and months. We often have as many as seven or eight nurses in on OT. And if for some reason we're overstaffed , the OT or casual nurse is cancelled. Regular staff will be offered PTO and if they have to send someone home after they've reported for work, they have to pay them 4 hours anyway.