Cancelled all the time

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · May 9, 2011

A couple of weeks ago I worked only one day during that week and was called off two days in a row. Census was dangerously low.

The hospital also started sending respiratory therapy home early, canceling the unit secretaries, sending dietary staff home, slashing the hours of environmental services, and so forth. They were cutting costs wherever they could (with the exception of upper management - they're salaried and never lose money).

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · May 9, 2011

Just was curious if census was low everywhere or just me. We cancelled 4 nurses on one shift just for our 12 bed ICU 2 days in a row. Appears that no one can afford to be sick.

rockenmomRN · May 10, 2011

this is a despicable practice and I'm not sure how management is allowed to get away with it. You sign to work 3 12 hour shifts per week and they have the liberty to take that away. I hope people can see why unions are important...I hope that doesn't start a horrible debate.

SunSurfRN · May 10, 2011

I have to say, everyone wants the exalted hospital jobs, but in home care where I am this never happens. 3 12s sound nice but is too forensic...hospitals are a business with ebb and flow. I suspect this will happen more not less, as case managers push people out of hospitals earlier.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · May 12, 2011

this is a despicable practice and I'm not sure how management is allowed to get away with it. You sign to work 3 12 hour shifts per week and they have the liberty to take that away. I hope people can see why unions are important...I hope that doesn't start a horrible debate.

I have worked both union and non-union. Union has no effect on whether or not we are getting patients. We've just been really excessively slow. You can't have 8 nurses working in a 12 bed unit when there's only one patient. Honestly, they treat us exceptionally better at my non-union job than they did at my union job. Minus the fact that we are incredibly slow. Short of going around and driving blind folded or accidentally shocking people on the streets I don't see how to alleviate the situation.

rockenmomRN · May 16, 2011

Nicki, sorry to hear that. I work at a union represented hospital. Our contract states that we cannot be called off, but we may volunteer to either stay home or go home if census is low. We are the only hospital that has this arrangement and it's only because we've worked hard to get it that way.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · May 17, 2011

Nicki, sorry to hear that. I work at a union represented hospital. Our contract states that we cannot be called off, but we may volunteer to either stay home or go home if census is low. We are the only hospital that has this arrangement and it's only because we've worked hard to get it that way.

If there is 8 nurses scheduled though, and only 2 patients on the unit what is the plan then? Census is low in the entire hospital. Our med surg floor has been closed 2 weeks, the only busy floor is ER and they will take one or two of our nurses, but that still leaves 2-4 nurses without anyone to care for? Do the nurses just stay on an empty floor with no patients?

rockenmomRN · May 17, 2011

First we are respectfully asked if we would like to go home. That will usually weed out the ones who don't want to be at work. We also float to our sister unit if someone there wants to go home. If were still at surplus we're put on projects for the unit, as you know there's always things to be done on a unit. The point is, if you give nurses the option to go home they probably will. If you're constantly holding their livelihood over their heads, all you get is disgruntled employees. Our hospital system has been practicing like this since the Clinton years and even through the worst economic recession our system was making money. Very few of our nurses work at other hospitals for 'extra' money. I really hope other hospitals catch onto this and I sincerely hope your situation gets better.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · May 19, 2011

Thank you very much, the issue for us is that literally ALL the nurses in the hospital are getting called off 1 to 2x a week and we are all full time nurses. No one wants to go home, everyone wants to work, One unit is slow so some nurses aren't even getting a shift a week. They honestly need to just let some nurses go, and offer some of us per diem so we can at least find a job elsewhere to work. I have had to be on the hunt.

I was just wondering if other hospitals had low census hospital-wide, not just a certain department. Guess not.