I love you boss ... BUT!!...

[mindlor]

Please stop calling me in the middle of the day on my days off begging me to come in.....

Its called a schedule for a reason. I am new and already overwhelmed just working my scheduled time. I need my down time. I need to reacquaint myself with the friends and family that I ignored while I was in school.

I get that we are a for profit organization. However, it is not my fault that we have too many LPN and not enough RN so that we can save a few dollars here and there.

You are going to have to hire more RNs and staff up. You run around worrying about patient satisfaction and Press Gainey and yet the company lets accountants control the floor.

You are smart boss, you know what you need to do and you certainly dont need to hear it from a newb like me.

I hate telling you no, but I am going to continue to do so. If I do not, my health will suffer and my patients will be at serious risk secondary to my exhaustion.

I will be there when I am scheduled. It will be a cold day in Hades when I call off. I promise that.

But more than my three 12's which are actually more like 18's when you factor in travel time and charting and meetings......???

NO NO NO.....I am sorry, but NO

////VENT OFF/////

[mindlor]

Slavery | Define Slavery at Dictionary.com

please pay close attention to definition 4

[mindlor]

World English Dictionary

[TABLE=width: 100%]

[TR=class: tr1]

[TD=class: td1, colspan: 2]slavery (ˈsleɪvərɪ) [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2] [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=class: tr2]

[TD=class: td2, colspan: 2]— n [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=class: tr3]

[TD=class: td3n1, width: 1%, align: right]1. [/TD]

[TD=class: td3n2]the state or condition of being a slave; a civil relationship whereby one person has absolute power over another and controls his life, liberty, and fortune [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=class: tr3]

[TD=class: td3n1, width: 1%, align: right]2. [/TD]

[TD=class: td3n2]the subjection of a person to another person, esp in being forced into work [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=class: tr3]

[TD=class: td3n1, width: 1%, align: right]3. [/TD]

[TD=class: td3n2]the condition of being subject to some influence or habit [/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=class: tr3]

[TD=class: td3n1, width: 1%, align: right]4. [/TD]

[TD=class: td3n2]work done in harsh conditions for low pay [/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[Aurora77]

Were you carried off in a ship in chains against your will and subjected to inhumane treatment?It's hardly a matter of semantics.

Agreed. I can't stand the frequent references to slavery. Every single one of us could do a no call no show for our next shift with no repercussions other than getting fired. We wouldn't be beaten or have our children sold off to the neighboring hospital. In the U.S. or Canada, anyone working in what they consider to be slavery are doing do at their own choice. Sure jobs may not be plentiful, but they are out there.

Back on topic, I have no problem saying yes or no when I'm called. I show up for my shifts and do what's required of me. Anything extra is at my discretion. Sure, working short is tough, but we all have lives outside of work. My home life is far more important to me than a job. I hope my coworkers feel the same way.

[trai1971]

The reality is this: Nursing is not always an 8 hour job. There will be times if someone doesn't show up, inclement weather when staff can't get in, emergencies, etc. that you will be mandated. That being said, do what you can otherwise. If it's your day off and you just can't come in, then don't. If I work extra, I choose to come in early or stay later, than to actually give up a day off. Just remember extra help is always appreciated by your coworkers, even if your managers don't. And it's not fair to think "the younger People" should do all the extra shifts. Everyone should do what they can!

[trai1971]

Mandate means, in this context, being required to stay over because you have nobody to relieve you.

[anotherone, BSN, RN]

Mandate means, in this context, being required to stay over because you have nobody to relieve you.

In many cases, due to the employer's fault . NOT WEATHER OR CALL OUTS. but short staffing. Then told to suck it up or threatened with those "patient abadonment " claims.

[wooh, BSN, RN]

the facility no longer hires PRN.

In many cases, due to the employer's fault . NOT WEATHER OR CALL OUTS. but short staffing. Then told to suck it up or threatened with those "patient abadonment " claims.

This is the problem. If it was an occasional thing, yes, most of us would "help out." But we're being treated like WE are the problem. Staffing should account for not just people on scheduled vacations (which right now, my unit won't even let us take off anything but pretty much Tuesdays and Wednesdays), but people that take a mandatory class, and yes, even call-ins. IT IS UNREALISTIC TO EXPECT NURSING STAFF TO NEVER GET SICK. We're around germs all day. We're working 16+ hours. Nurses will get sick, will call in, and yes, management should have a plan to staff accordingly even when we call in sick.

How can they do that? HIRE MORE PEOPLE.

PRN people. Enough people to cover the schedule when one person takes a vacation. Enough people to cover the schedule if one person calls in sick.

Sure, multiple people calling in when two nurses are on maternity leave could be an issue that requires calling the regular staff to work extra hours. But one person calling in sick shouldn't be a staffing emergency. Covering for vacations when someone's on maternity leave can be handled way in advance, it shouldn't require mandating. Covering a maternity leave definitely shouldn't require mandating unless the person goes into labor at 30 weeks.

Poor staffing is not the result of call-ins. Poor staffing is the result of poor planning on the part of the people doing schedules. My hospital has critical needs EVERY SINGLE WEEKEND long BEFORE anybody has called in. That is NOT the fault of staff nurses for daring to get sick and call in.

[hiddencatRN, BSN, RN]

This is the problem. If it was an occasional thing, yes, most of us would "help out." But we're being treated like WE are the problem. Staffing should account for not just people on scheduled vacations (which right now, my unit won't even let us take off anything but pretty much Tuesdays and Wednesdays), but people that take a mandatory class, and yes, even call-ins. IT IS UNREALISTIC TO EXPECT NURSING STAFF TO NEVER GET SICK. We're around germs all day. We're working 16+ hours. Nurses will get sick, will call in, and yes, management should have a plan to staff accordingly even when we call in sick.

How can they do that? HIRE MORE PEOPLE.

PRN people. Enough people to cover the schedule when one person takes a vacation. Enough people to cover the schedule if one person calls in sick.

Sure, multiple people calling in when two nurses are on maternity leave could be an issue that requires calling the regular staff to work extra hours. But one person calling in sick shouldn't be a staffing emergency. Covering for vacations when someone's on maternity leave can be handled way in advance, it shouldn't require mandating. Covering a maternity leave definitely shouldn't require mandating unless the person goes into labor at 30 weeks.

Poor staffing is not the result of call-ins. Poor staffing is the result of poor planning on the part of the people doing schedules. My hospital has critical needs EVERY SINGLE WEEKEND long BEFORE anybody has called in. That is NOT the fault of staff nurses for daring to get sick and call in.

Exactly. It's one thing to have a staffing emergency once in a while but when it's all the time, it's not an emergency, it's a chronic understaffing issue. Hire some of these new grads! Work on turnover issues. Make staff feel like you at least appreciate them picking up OT.

[SinikRN101]

On our station or unit, we started controlling the OT (mandate) to where we already knew who would cover our shift before we would even call in. If someone was short of hours, we would figure out who would call off to give that person hours. Or if someone was tired/couldn't make it/had family obligations, we would volunteer for their shift to cover. It worked out pretty good until they pulled people from another station who had their hours cut, and messed up our whole routine. Now, I don't answer my phone if work calls on my day off. I too feel that it is completely under appreciated.