nursing float pool

Nurses General Nursing

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hi i just want to know what does nursing float pool means?

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if you work for a float pool say at a hospital, you will be placed on whatever floor/unit has a need for you(floated around). you really don't have a home unit.

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When nurses get moved from one unit to another, it is called floating. Many institutions have a group (pool) of nurses who don't have a particular unit that they always work on, but go where staff is needed in their institution. This is the institution's way of trying to avoid using help from outside agencies. Nurses who work in the float pool generally make more money per hour, but don't get benefits like health insurance.

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Specializes in NICU.

I was in the float pool and loved it. We didn't make any more money an hour (although we did get the same differential as the other nurses/CNA's) and we did get benefits where I worked. The advantages are that you get to choose your own hours, we were only required to work 1 winter holiday and 1 summer holiday a year and we got to choose which one, and you don't get involved in the politics of the unit. The disadvantage is that I didn't know where I was going to work until an hour and a half before shift--and I sometimes shorted myself hours because I found self-scheduling to be a bit appealing ;). But, there was plenty of opportunity for OT for those who were interested.

There was one unit I loved working for and was asked to stay there and that's where I'm at now, but I'd recommend the pool if you're interested.

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Hikernurse, that is really cool. I was shocked to learn that the pool nurses where I work make $50.00/hr, but with no benefits. The ones that work in one of the Level I trauma hospitals here made more than that. Since I have my insurance through my husband, I could make a bunch of money if I liked to float.

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Specializes in NICU.

Aries, I'd be willing to forego benefits for $50/hour :)

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Specializes in psychiatric, research, icu, float, pacu.

I worked in the float pool for 3 years before transferring to the PACU. I did make a little bit more money than the nurses that didn't float, and I was full time staff so I had benefits. The one perk that our float pool had was that I could change my schedule anytime I wanted as long as I gave the office 24 hour notice. I could take time off, or move shifts around, it didn't matter I just had to give that 24 hour notice. I also only worked 1 minor and 1 major holiday a year (and since I was nights the float pool considered the eve of the holiday my holiday worked). I was only required to work 16 hours worth of weekend shifts per month. So my two 12 hour Friday night shifts counted toward that. Ahhh those were the good ole days :wink2:

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Specializes in Geriatrics, MS, ICU.
Aries, I'd be willing to forego benefits for $50/hour :)

That makes 2 of us...I would definitely give up some benefits for that amount of money! I worked float pool when I first graduated and believe me there were no extra incetives. Other than the fact that you were able to get exposure to a lot of different units, and different types of nursing. I think if I was making that amount of money I would have never left!

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Wound Care.

I've been working in the float pool for almost 4 years now.. and LOVE IT!! Yup, we make good money!!;) But we are also the first to be cancelled, so it usually averages out.

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Specializes in floor to ICU.

Float pool rocks! Haven't done it in years though. Back in the day, I had it made. Mon-Fri 7-3. It was great. I remember liking it during the holidays. Seems there was always a party going on where ever I was sent. It was nice not to be with the same ol' folks everyday- especially if there were a lot of politics going on.

At my job we have float nurses. They are regular employees and make $5 more per hr, I think. I'm pretty sure they still have to do every other weekend and a couple of holidays.

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I've been working in the float pool for almost 4 years now.. and LOVE IT!! Yup, we make good money!!;) But we are also the first to be cancelled, so it usually averages out.

In our hospital the floats are guaranteed to work (they can't be cancelled) but reg.Staff can be. I 've been thinking of "floating" - I know I'd learn alot (ER, L&D....) places I've never floated to....

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I work the "float pool" but at my hospital it is called "the resource team". RN's are paid $2 extra an hour to work one cluster, $3 to work two clusters and $4 to work three or more clusters. Right now I am working med-surg and tele clusters and am going to train for critical care this month. The extra pay is added to our base and our OT is calculated with the extra incentive pay included. I am a hospital employee and get the same benefits as floor nurses, but as resource team, if staff is called off due to low census, I will be either moved to another floor mid-shift or I am the first to be asked if I want to go home early. I am not required to go home, though, they will just go down the line until they find someone who wants to leave. I have the same holiday and weekend rotation requirements as all the other nurses. We have a rotating holiday schedule and I work every 3rd weekend.

On the other hand, some of the floors use the resource team as their "relief squadron" and resource nurses get the patients with C-dif, overbearing family members, pain drug seekers, actively dying, and general PITA patients, etc. I usually get at least one chronic PITA patient on my team no matter where I go. Sometimes I get them so often that I know them better than the staff that has them on their floor for 3 weeks at time. I digress, but one time a nurse was frustrated with a patient's high blood sugar readings and stated that she isn't on that much solu-medrol, couldn't figure out what was going on. I asked who the patient was and when the name was given to me I laughed and told her that patient hides food. Sure enough, there was a plate of brownies under her night stand, a bag of candy in her covers and countless other high carb items throughout her belongings. I had cared for this patient so many times on so many units, I knew all of her tricks!

I ramped up my general nursing knowledge very quickly working the resource team and have found that alot of nurses seek me out for advice on patient conditions, starting IV's, reading their tele strips, etc. The other nurses and nursing assistants also ask me about other units and managers if they are looking for a job in another unit, I can usually give them a good idea of the conditions compared to where they work. I also know based on my experience that if I do choose a home floor, which ones I would be willing to choose and which ones I would not.

One negative for me, our hospital has 3 campuses and if you don't get a call telling you where you are needed, it is assumed you are at one particular campus. Yesterday the nursing supervisor didn't get her calls out to let me know which campus I was in and so I had to walk back out to the parking lot and drive to the other campus after I got to the time clock. Usually I don't mind but I am having an arthritic flare of the left knee and don't need any extra walking at this point! Oh, well, I clocked in first so they paid me for my extra walking and driving.

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