conflict with head nurse...

[socalRN3]

i work on a unit that has a waiting list to go to days. to make a long story short, i asked to be added and was added on the list and now the head nurse is adding other nurses ahead of me because she said they were told to wait to be added until they were on their own...which one of them confided to me that he was never asked to wait. This is frustrating because if the head nurse is doing this now there is no end in sight to how long i will have to wait.

since i started a few months ago (i was an extern on this floor as well) would it be appropriate to go to the nurse manager and ask for her permission to look at other departments that may have day shift openings available..such as PACU, ICU, float pool, med/surg units?

[nurse2033, MSN, RN]

Can you ask for what the policy is for this request in writing? You may not have all the facts, or it may be arbitrary and capricious. By asking to see the policy might remind them to follow it, or create one if there isn't one. Once you know the policy you could determine how you fit into the order of things and see how long it might be. Good luck.

[noctanol]

Can you ask for what the policy is for this request in writing? You may not have all the facts, or it may be arbitrary and capricious. By asking to see the policy might remind them to follow it, or create one if there isn't one. Once you know the policy you could determine how you fit into the order of things and see how long it might be. Good luck.

just to add, with my job there is no written policy, it depends on seniority, they go by who ever has been there longer first and so on. Going to your immediate supervisor/nurse manager/DON is not a bad idea. however, get all the facts straight and dont make a mess of something that you might be on the wrong to begin with.

[socalRN3]

There really is no hospital policy for determining how the list works. On my unit it works by first come first serve basis. So this person who was added before me had 6 months to decide before I was hired on to go to days. He didn't want to during that time and never asked. Therefore, it doesn't make sense why he was added before me.

Anyway, if the list stays as is then I will waiting at least a year or two. I cannot keep up with nights this long physically and emotionally it really gets me down.

If I speak with the nurse manager I'm going to tell her how much I like working at this hospital, I've learned a ton etc etc, but with no way to determine how long this wait will be I want to ask for permission to transfer to a different unit for the opportunity for a day shift position. Does this sound ok?

[TiffyRN, BSN, PhD]

I know the "rules" have changed where I work several times. Thankfully I'm a dedicated nights person, but I sympathize, I'd be miserable if I had to work days. Where I work it used to be if your name rose to the top of the list, it stayed there until you took a dayshift position. Currently, if one's name is at the top and a position comes available one either accepts the position or moves to the bottom of the list. Almost no one gets hired to day shift, almost everyone starts on nights and goes on the list. The average wait is 1.5-2 years.

I doubt you would have any recourse on your current floor unless you made some sort of written employment agreement about progression to days. I've never heard of an employer who would put that in writing.

You asked would it be appropriate to ask to transfer to another position in the hospital. Well, that would depend on your facility. Most places I've worked there is a 6 month to 1yr waiting period before a new employee has the option to initiate a transfer. Sometimes the manager can release the employee early but is not required to let them go until the waiting period is up. They are less likely to want to release the new employee if there was an extensive orientation period or something like an internship involved. Basically you've cost your manager a lot of money and he/she wants return on the investment.

I saw someone suggested you ask to see the written wait list policy. I've never worked anywhere that had a written policy. The fanciest I've seen is an actual written list of employees waiting to go to day shift.

[P_RN, ADN, RN]

I don't think you have to have the NM's permission to check out other floors. After all she doesn't own you.

[BittyBabyGrower, MSN, RN]

No they don't own you, but as someone else said you may have to wait 6-12 months before you can transfer.

We put a list up for who wants to move to other shifts and then it goes by seniority.

[socalRN3]

We have to wait 6 months before we can transfer, so I have less than 2 months left. I highly doubt the NM would really care if I want to go to days somewhere else. However, the CN on the unit told me "at least you have a night position" as if I don't appreciate my job, which I absolutely do. The last thing I would want the NM to think is that I don't appreciate that I have a job. This is why I was thinking about approaching her about transferring and figured she may have some insight on day positions opening up in the near future.

[juliaann]

The last thing I would want the NM to think is that I don't appreciate that I have a job. This is why I was thinking about approaching her about transferring and figured she may have some insight on day positions opening up in the near future.

I'm not a nurse (yet), but I started working as a CNA on a med/tele floor a little over two years ago. I was quickly burned out on the understaffing and the monotonous routine and the petty CNA drama -- I wanted a job that was a little more intellectually challenging! So after a year (the waiting period to be eligible for transfer in my facility) I chose to take a basic dysrhythmia course and and EKG course on my own. After doing it I noticed there was a CV tech job open and wanted to go for it.

Talking to my NM before putting in my transfer was the best choice I could have made. I explained to her that I needed something different. She was hesistant at first and said she really didn't want to lose me, but I told her if she didn't want to sign my transfer I would probably leave the facility entirely. Once she realized how unhappy I was, she started giving me shifts in the tele monitor room and signed my transfer. I'm a CV tech now and I loooooove it. I'm so glad I discussed it with my NM first and got her "approval" in more ways than one. The NMs are pretty close in my facility, and I know without her putting in a good word for me with my new manager, I probably wouldn't have gotten this job.

[MassED, BSN, RN]

why not just ask your mgr where you are on the list? Start from there, if you see/hear that these other nurses were ahead of you, when you know they were not, address that with the manager.

[MassED, BSN, RN]

There really is no hospital policy for determining how the list works. On my unit it works by first come first serve basis. So this person who was added before me had 6 months to decide before I was hired on to go to days. He didn't want to during that time and never asked. Therefore, it doesn't make sense why he was added before me.

Anyway, if the list stays as is then I will waiting at least a year or two. I cannot keep up with nights this long physically and emotionally it really gets me down.

If I speak with the nurse manager I'm going to tell her how much I like working at this hospital, I've learned a ton etc etc, but with no way to determine how long this wait will be I want to ask for permission to transfer to a different unit for the opportunity for a day shift position. Does this sound ok?

that sounds like an ultimatum, and doesn't sound like a good choice to steer a conversation, particularly if you're looking for a dayshift only. You're basically saying "give me a day shift, or I'm finding another job in the hospital." You know that managers talk to each other too, so watch out.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

ask your head nurse where you are on the list to go to days. if names were added after you and were placed in front of you, ask why. many places award day shift positions on the basis of seniority, so in that case it may be entirely appropriate for the nurse manager to place them ahead of you. as for looking for day shift positions on other units . . . good luck with that. usually you'll find that the day shift positions are awarded to staff who have already proven their loyalty by staying for awhile, and you'd be back on a waiting list.