Driving drowsy

Alex Egan, LPN, EMT-B · Jun 3, 2018

Yep. One of the LTC places I worked early in my career was so awesome about this and the rest have just sucked. If something was mandatory it would be offered a bunch of times. Either across a few days or for staff meetings it would be 0600, 0800, 1400, 1000, 1130. You could come early leave late or get it on your shift. It was awesome. Now all my education is done via internet but you can't get any help or questions answered off hours.

DayDreamin ER CRNP · Jun 3, 2018

I'd would push for 0730 meetings! My previous ED was huge and would have a 0730 meeting and a 1800 meeting to cover both shifts. We also worked in crews so the manager would often have four meetings per week to cover everyone's schedule. There was no way a night shifter should be required to come in at 1100 AM just to come to a meeting just like a day shifter shouldn't be required to come in at 2300 for a meeting.

gees_rn · Jun 3, 2018

That bothers me. They really WOULDNT expect a day shift nurse to come in at 11:30 for a class to a meeting. They would also NEVER call them at 1:30AM to see if they could come in early.

hawaiicarl, BSN, RN · Jun 3, 2018

I love the post title ... Driving Drowsy, could be the story of my life! Luckily we have those little dots in the middle of the road and the bumpity bump usually wakes me up. If you added a Miss to the title it would be Driving Miss Drowsy.

Cheers

caliotter3 · Jun 3, 2018

I was expected to work night shift each night before and after driving to a location about 30 miles away and staying up all day acting as part of a board, for three days straight. The back country road was icy and snowy, especially on curves, ask me how I know. When I asked my supervisor to have the night shift off, oh, well. He would not have visited me in the hospital or paid to repair my car either. Sometimes you work for that type of person. Never a thought to doing something the reasonable way.

allnurses Guide · Jun 4, 2018

Most places where I have worked have been pretty good about

scheduling meetings, education, etc at multiple times. I've even

worked at a couple of psychiatric facilities that would offer entire

skills fairs late at night, so that night shift could easily take care

of their yearly required education/competencies.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Jun 4, 2018

A former DON was famous for this. I work in a smaller SNF which might make a difference in how it's handled, what we did is the entire night shift refused to attend these meetings. We told the DON as a group that until he decides to hold a few mandatory meetings at midnight we won't be attending the ones at noon.

Kooky Korky, BSN, RN · Jun 4, 2018

A former DON was famous for this. I work in a smaller SNF which might make a difference in how it's handled, what we did is the entire night shift refused to attend these meetings. We told the DON as a group that until he decides to hold a few mandatory meetings at midnight we won't be attending the ones at noon.

And??

Kooky Korky, BSN, RN · Jun 4, 2018

For all of you who put up with this - You must band together and correct this at once. Stop being willing to put your lives, your bodies at risk. Don't assume that the boss has thought about how wrong and how dangerous and how disrespectful this is to those who do not work during the shift he/she holds the meetings. Make the boss aware, in writing.

If no good result, still refuse to attend, and make the DON aware in writing.

Along with the refusal to endanger yourselves, suggest realistic alternatives.

Have Nurse, ADN, RN · Jun 4, 2018

More nurses are stating they have driven drowsy and had near misses and actual collisions while driving home from a mandatory meeting or some mandatory education that was only offered in the day hours. There are more articles on the web this year about driving drowsy and the dangers than ever before. Hospitals need to offer their mandatory education either by DVD or during the night shift. Asking a nurse to sleep in her car until the class starts or to go home after a 12 hour shift and sleep for two hours and then get up/shower and return to work for some 2 hour mandatory.. ridiculous. They wouldn't ask a day shifter to get up at 1130 pm and come in for a class from midnight to 0200 would they? This is a great dissatisfaction marker for nurses. I am worried about getting killed on the way home from the minute I see that mandatory class pop up on the board. How many people have to be injured or killed to stop this nonsense? The best part... do you really think these nurse that have already worked 12 hours or have to get up pin the middle of their night will retain a single thing you presented... not!!!

I agree. They could at least offer the same training once per shift so everyone could attend, on two separate days during the month. That way, days and pms could attend on an off day or just before their shift starts, and nights could come later after they've had some sleep.

I have worried about that too.

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · Jun 4, 2018

Healthcare Worker Fatigue: Too Tired to Care?

You might find this free CE offering insightful- and it gives evidence to back up the need for accommodation for night shifters.

and this: Fatigue Countermeasures: Preparing YOU for Shift and Overnight Work