Disciplined For Helping With Disaster

[Blue_Elder]

I was scheduled to work the night a tornado hit the next town taking the town totally apart. A friend of mine who is a state police officer notified me of the disaster because he knew I had been a firefighter before I became a nurse and asked me to help. I called the LTC facility I work at and the ADON said I would have to find my own coverage. I couldn't believe she didn't say ok and try to cover my shift for me or the management cover for me as there way to help. I understand every nurse should not just drop everything and fly to the disaster but my skill set is a little different than most nurses with my firefighting experience. I tried to get it covered myself but the girl I asked said she would if she could get her child picked up by another family member. I don't know why she did not call back, it could have very well been because of lines down, towers down, and electric down. When I didn't get an answer within fifteen minutes or so I left for the tornado victims. The next week they wrote me up for attendance and said I put the the residents at the facility in danger by not having adequate staff. Please...this certainly was not the first time the facility would have been short staffed as anyone who works in LTC can tell you. Tell me what you think. Should it have counted against me?

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

your responsibility was first to your workplace and second to the community at large. yes, you should have been disciplined for not showing up at work. if you had found your own coverage, great. but you didn't, and you didn't go to work, either. therefore your work was short staffed and the patients may have suffered. your colleagues -- the ones who were working short and who were probably spending extra time comforting anxious residents who had family or friends in the disaster area -- certainly suffered.

helping out in a disaster is great -- but skill set or no, you were expected to be at your job. they were right to call you on your failure to show up.

[interleukin]

You chose drama over everyday responsibility...your judgement was in error.

[DolceVita, ADN, BSN, RN]

If you have indeed been a red cross volunteer n disasters then you will understand that self-deployment into a disaster is frowned upon by every agency involved. Although you were notified by a police officer friend that is not the same as being attached to an organization.Anyone who wants to be of service in time of disaster should consider joining their MRC. There is even a national body that functions like the national guard...meaning your employer must release you at nearly no notice if you are being deployed.I would have disciplined you too.Your fried, as a police officer, was unlikely to know who or what assistance was already on the way. That is the job of those in the EOC.Self deployed individuals in disasters usually end up having to be housed and fed by disaster relief organizations, like the ARC, because they are not part of the formal relief effort. You will know from your red cross experience that they are then counted as a victim rather than a relief worker.

[Blue_Elder]

When I say disciplined for attendance I mean it went against my attendance. The concept of calling them and just saying sorry I am not coming in tonight and not giving the facility a reason why is rude and worse some of you think I should have just lied. I could have called in because I myself had no hot water, power or phone. My yard was covered with debris from the town because I live just 2 miles from it. It might be worth noting that every person that is not in nursing (and lot who are) is confused as why It went against my attendance. Thanks for the advice and it is a done deal. I am now currently on a fire department. Let me clear I do understand that I made the wrong choice for the facility but I made the right choice for me. My heart is not with LTC but emergency response where my medical career started. I am going back to where I am happy.

[OCNRN63, RN]

When I say disciplined for attendance I mean it went against my attendance. The concept of calling them and just saying sorry I am not coming in tonight and not giving the facility a reason why is rude and worse some of you think I should have just lied. I could have called in because I myself had no hot water, power or phone. My yard was covered with debris from the town because I live just 2 miles from it. It might be worth noting that every person that is not in nursing (and lot who are) is confused as why It went against my attendance. Thanks for the advice and it is a done deal. I am now currently on a fire department. Let me clear I do understand that I made the wrong choice for the facility but I made the right choice for me. My heart is not with LTC but emergency response where my medical career started. I am going back to where I am happy.

Then it's probably for the best that you left If you have so little regard for the patients entrusted to you, it's better for you to be doing something else.

[caliotter3]

It is not rude to not give a reason for not reporting to work. It is common sense and shows consideration for the person on the other end who has to convey the message and/or provide the ok. It prevents having to distinguish between what is acceptable and what is not. Hope they hire someone who puts the facility residents before third parties. Best wishes in your new job. Hope you reconsider your work priorities before you undertake your new responsibilities.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

You made a choice.. go to work.. or go assist in a disaster.

I would think that your facility could go above and beyond their little box ..and let you go to where your skills would help people in a disastrous situation.

They did not. Now you know how selfish and narrow minded they are.

I personally, applaud your decision and your guts.

[MN-Nurse, ASN, RN]

Tell me what you think. Should it have counted against me?

Yes.

If you want to be a firefighter, by all means go be one. But if you take on the job of a nurse, you have a responsibility to be a nurse. It was fine to call and say, "Hey, can you find someone to cover if I go attend to this disaster?" However, if your boss says, "No, I cannot," then you have to go to work.

I applaud your intentions, but you aren't Batman.

[missladyrn]

You were not diciplined for helping with a disaster, you were diciplined for not showing up to work. It really does not matter what the reason, you did not show up and it sounds like you do not really feel bad about it either. I can't say I blame them for being upset. How much notice did you give them when you called off? If you are part of a rescue team that would be one thing, but to self appoint yourself a disaster rescue person is quite another.

[Good Morning, Gil]

I think my opinion would depend on how much notice you gave them. If they had at least 4 hours, they should have been able to find someone. Your skills as a nurse, and as a firefighter were much appreciated at the disaster, I'm sure. Since they specifically called you to help, they obviously needed it. The LTC should have worked with you more and respected your desire to help in the disaster; you weren't avoiding work or trying to call in sick just to watch a movie. You were taking on potentially a much worse night to help others.

I don't think they should have written you up. I think they should be properly staffed and have some PRN employees on hand that they could call if needed. What if you had called in sick? They would have worked everyone short anyway since it sounds like you're short staffed all of the time. If this is your only call off, and you're not one to always call off, then they definitely should not have written you up. If you call off all of the time, then I can see where they may not have wanted to work with you and wrote you up as a final straw type of thing (not saying you do or implying that you do, just giving my opinion depending on the situation).

No, you shouldn't have been written up. A true disaster is a rare thing, so what you were doing was noble, and if I were managing that LTC, I'd be proud that one of my nurses wanted to help and would have come in to work his/her shift for her.

[Good Morning, Gil]

The poll results surprised me; I'm surprised I'm in the minority here. Does nobody (or only 20%, I guess? lol) agree with me that places should be properly staffed to enable nurses to help with disasters? (or call off sick without the rest of the crew being short-staffed? lol).

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

So what happens when every nurse would rather help with the disaster than show up to work?